To Kill a Mockingbird 4 - Women's Rights

   All around the world, women are always an indispensable part of any group, no matter in family, or a big country. Many of them have great talents and ambition that can help make the world a better place. However, from the past to the present, women’s position in societies is constantly overlooked, and they are often considered less qualified and competent than men regardless of their experience, education, or ability. Therefore, movements aiming to promote women’s rights are active all over the world.

   Movements concerning the rights of women really began to take off in the 19^th century. In July of 1848, in Seneca Falls New York, a gathering hosted by Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Lucretia Mott was held. There, Stanton wrote a “Declaration of Rights and Sentiments” that was about the rights of women. This was the major event that sparked the Women’s Rights Movement from 1848 to 1920.

   There were many champions in the early stages of this noble cause. One such was Susan B. Anthony. She was a Massachusetts teacher before she forged a lifetime alliance with Stanton in 1850. She was very active, and in the 1850s, with Stanton, they fought for women’s basic economic freedoms. However, Lucy Stone was probably the most influential figure in the early movements. She was a vocal advocate and organizer who tried, through many efforts, to achieve greater rights for women. Stone helped establish the first National Women’s Rights Convention and the American Woman Suffrage Association. She, along with Susan B. Anthony and Stanton has been called the 19^th-century “triumvirate” of women’s suffrage and feminism.

   One of the most important goals of the Women’s Rights Movement was promoting women’s voting rights. In the Declaration of Rights and Sentiments, signed in July 1848, Stanton mentioned that women should have equal rights with men, and later, there were many people who devoted themselves to fulfill this cause. But the most influential century was the 20^th, when in 1920 the 19^th Amendment was passed and women finally gained the right to vote.

   However, there are still many challenges that women face today. The most profound and problematic one is patriarchy. Many societies around the world have a patriarchal nature, and the female gender is considered less strong and smart than the male race in those societies. This is a problem, because many women cannot even begin to develop whatever talent they possess, as they are instantly relegated to caretakers, mothers, and servants of their husbands.

   Our world is an intricate structure; each person, no matter of which race or gender, should be equally given a chance to develop. We, as humans, live together on Planet Earth, and we should not discriminate against any race or gender. If the world is a large puzzle, and each race and gender is a piece, casting away any piece makes the puzzle forever imperfect. This can cause the world to be imbalanced. Only by respecting each other can we truly create a “global village”, where all of us can live harmoniously in a connected network of different civilizations.