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1
HOUSE RESOLUTION

 
2    WHEREAS, The year 2020 marks the 100th anniversary of the
3ratification of the 19th Amendment to the United States
4Constitution, guaranteeing and protecting the right to vote for
5women in the United States; and
 
6    WHEREAS, This centennial provides an opportunity to
7celebrate a milestone in our democracy, that the right of
8citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or
9abridged by federal or state governments on account of gender;
10and
 
11    WHEREAS, Illinois has a history of being at the forefront
12of the women's suffrage movement, as Illinois women played a
13pivotal role in obtaining the right to vote for women; and
 
14    WHEREAS, In 1855, Susan Hoxie Richardson, cousin of Susan
15B. Anthony, organized the first suffrage association in
16Illinois in Earlville, a small town in LaSalle County west of
17Chicago; and
 
18    WHEREAS, In 1869, the first statewide suffrage
19organization in Illinois, the Illinois Woman's Suffrage
20Association (IWSA), was formed, and it held its first annual
21convention in the state capitol of Springfield in 1870; and
 

 

 

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1    WHEREAS, In 1890, Catherine Waugh McCulloch was elected
2IWSA Superintendent of Legislative Work and drafted
3legislation that would give Illinois women the right to vote;
4and
 
5    WHEREAS, In 1891, Illinois women gained the right to vote
6in school board elections; and
 
7    WHEREAS, From 1911 to 1914, Jane Addams, who long fought
8for suffrage in Illinois, served as Vice-President of the
9National American Women Suffrage Association as the
10organization helped to push for a national amendment for the
11right to vote for women; and
 
12    WHEREAS, In 1913, Illinois became the first state east of
13the Mississippi River to grant women the right to vote with the
14passage of the Presidential Suffrage Bill; and
 
15    WHEREAS, On June 4, 1919, the U.S. Congress passed the 19th
16Amendment that guaranteed all American women the right to vote;
17and
 
18    WHEREAS, On June 10, 1919, Illinois became the first state
19to vote to ratify the 19th Amendment; and
 

 

 

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1    WHEREAS, On August 18, 1920, the 19th Amendment was
2ratified, thanks to the efforts of women from Illinois,
3including Elizabeth Boynton Harbert, Frances E. Willard, Jane
4Addams, Ida B. Wells, Catharine McCulloch, and Grace Wilbur
5Trout; therefore, be it
 
6    RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE
7HUNDRED FIRST GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that
8we recognize August 18, 2020 as a day to celebrate the right to
9vote for all women in America and acknowledge the contributions
10of the women from Illinois who worked so hard for so long to
11bring women across the United States the full benefit of
12citizenship.