Suffrage and the city : New York women battle for the ballot / Lauren C. Santangelo.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Santangelo, Lauren C., author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Women--Suffrage--United States--History.

Women.

Women--Political activity--United States--History.

New York (State)--Politics and government--1865-1950.

New York (State).

Genre:

History.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (273 pages)

Place of Publication:

New York, NY : Oxford University Press, [2019]

Summary:

In 1917, women won the vote in New York State. Suffrage and the City explores how activists in New York City were instrumental in achieving this milestone. Santangelo uncovers the ways in which the demand for women's rights intersected with the history, politics, and culture of New York City in the Gilded Age and Progressive Era. The fight for the vote in the nation's largest metropolis demanded that suffragists both mobilize and contest urban etiquette, as they worked to gain visibility and underscore their cause's respectability. From the Polo Grounds to the Lower East Side, organizers championed political equality to anyone who would listen in the early twentieth century. Their Fifth Avenue parades showcased the various Manhattan subcultures, including industrial laborers, teachers, nurses, and even socialites, that they transformed into a broad coalition by the 1910s. Films and newspapers broadcasted their tactics to rest of the country, just as the national suffrage organization decided to draw on Gotham's resources by moving its own headquarters to midtown and thereby turning Manhattan into the movement's capital. The city's mores, rhythms, and physical layout helped to shape what was possible for organizers campaigning within it. At the same time, suffragists helped to redefine the urban experience for white, middle-class women. Combining urban studies, geography, and gender and political history, Suffrage and the City demonstrates that the Big Apple was more than just a stage for suffrage action; it was part of the drama. As much as enfranchisement was a political victory in New York State, it was also a uniquely urban and cultural one.

Contents:

"The wickedness of the masses": the perils of suffrage, 1870-1894

Becoming "a lover of the metropolis," 1895-1906

Ushering in a "new era," 1907-1909

Geographies of suffrage, 1910-1913

"Suffrage 'owns' city," 1913-1915

From confrontation to collaboration, 1916 and 1917

Epilogue

Appendix: Key suffrage organizations in Manhattan.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Description based on print version record.

ISBN:

0-19-085038-8

0-19-085039-6

0-19-085037-X