The Abolitionists and African American Suffragists
Where the Movement Began
The Suffrage Movement is rooted in the Abolitionist Movement, which began to advocate for the rights of women as well. Pioneering activists such as Sojourner Truth, Ida B. Wells-Barnett, Harriet Tubman and Frederick Douglas overcame tremendous adversity – including discrimination from fellow suffragists – to help win the vote.
To learn more about these visionary heroes, please click on the links below:
The Abolitionists vividly brings to life the struggles of the men and women who led the battle to end slavery.
READ MORE +
A panel discussion that was based on the exhibition Slavery and Freedom at the National Museum of African American History & Culture.
READ MORE +
The dramatic life and turbulent times of the pioneering African American journalist, activist, suffragist and anti-lynching crusader of the post-Reconstruction period.
READ MORE +
A resource that is interesting for beginners as well as for those interested in an in-depth understanding of the life of Tubman.
READ MORE +
Contemporary poet, D. A. Powell, reads and comments on Bury Me in a Free Land, one of the most poignant poems written by poet and abolitionist Frances Harper for the The Anti-Slavery Bugle newspaper in 1858.
READ MORE +
Nell Irvin Painter discusses her book, Sojourner Truth: A Life, A Symbol, about Sojourner Truth, an African-American abolitionist and women's rights activist.
READ MORE +
Sandra M. Grayson's research paper examines the role of Black women as active agents in the struggle for freedom in the era of slavery.
READ MORE +
Noted historian C. R. Gibbs and author Joan Quigley paint a vivid portrait of this fervent advocate for racial equality, women’s suffrage and civil rights in Robin Hamilton’s documentary: the Dignity and Defiance: A Portrait of Mary Church Terrell.
READ MORE +
In her talk, John Jay College of Criminal Justice professor, Gloria Browne-Marshall addresses issues black women faced in their struggle to win voting rights.
READ MORE +
Frederick Douglass: Prophet of Freedom
Read the definitive biography of the most important African American of the nineteenth century: Frederick Douglass, the escaped slave who became the greatest orator of his day and one of the leading abolitionists and writers of the era.
READ MORE +
Learn how women have long been active participants in U.S. history, and how many became politically powerful before winning the vote.
READ MORE +