HR0382LRB101 12471 ALS 60650 r

1
HOUSE RESOLUTION

 
2    WHEREAS, Illinois had long been at the forefront of the
3movement to provide women the right to vote; and
 
4    WHEREAS, In Illinois, the women's suffrage association was
5established in Earlville in LaSalle County in 1855, just seven
6years after the first women's rights convention in Seneca Falls
7New York, which called for suffrage for women; and
 
8    WHEREAS, The Illinois Woman Suffrage Association, the
9first statewide suffrage organization, was established in
101869; the organization became the Illinois Equal Suffrage
11Association in 1981; and
 
12    WHEREAS, In 1891, Illinois enacted a law allowing women the
13right to vote for elective school offices; and
 
14    WHEREAS, In 1913, Illinois enacted the Presidential
15Suffrage Bill, which gave Illinois women the right to vote in
16federal and municipal elections, which were not otherwise
17restricted to men only by the Illinois Constitution; and
 
18    WHEREAS, With the enactment of that law, Illinois became
19the first state east of the Mississippi River to give women
20such right to vote for President of the United States and is

 

 

HR0382- 2 -LRB101 12471 ALS 60650 r

1credited with being a major positive influence in advancing the
2women's suffrage movement in the United States; and
 
3    WHEREAS, On June 4, 1919, the proposed 19th Amendment to
4the United States Constitution was passed by the United States
5Congress and sent to the States for ratification; and
 
6    WHEREAS, 100 years ago on June 10, 1919, Illinois became
7the first State to ratify the 19th Amendment, one hour prior to
8Wisconsin; and
 
9    WHEREAS, Illinois led the way for the necessary
10three-fourths of the States to ratify the 19th Amendment, which
11became part of the Constitution on August 26, 1920; therefore,
12be it
 
13    RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE
14HUNDRED FIRST GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that
15we declare June 10, 2019 as a day to celebrate women's right to
16vote and the important role Illinois played in achieving that
17right in the United States.