American History

Any group of committed citizens however small it is holds the potential of shaping events in unprecedented ways. The womens Right Movement is among such groups that played a big role in shaping events in the United States of America. The movement held the view that a society should put in place values like living free in reference to religious freedom, having an influence on governance, and staying free from any kind of enslavement.

The changes to the womens status did not just come easily. Instead, they hugely depended upon exertions made by the movement on the United States systems of government. The strategies employed in the process of exacting changes were wide ranging. Through the use of democratic means, the women pushed their agenda. They lobbied, held meetings, petitioned leaders, spoke in public forums, and resisted certain aspects without resorting to violence to push for change.

Through the employment of democratic practices, the movement sought to bring change by appealing to the society to see sense in what the movement stood for. The application of the lobbying strategies holds the benefit of getting individuals and groups of influence to present your case. The other form of petitioning leaders holds the same advantage as it is the leaders who hold positions of influence and they are thus in pole standing to introduce the changes the women movement clamored for. The strategy f peaking in public forum posits well for a group that intends to attract public support. If a movement is to make progress, it is very important to gain the support of the public. This offers an explanation why the movement opted for these strategies.

The movement came up against the backdrop of the situation women were facing at the time. As a house wife, Elizabeth Cady Stanton while having tea with friends found out the bitter truth that they were facing unwelcome conditions in their day to day chores. They found out that they faced hurdles inside the American democracy and saw the need to seek changes.  The American Revolution which was fought 70 years earlier had not given the women folk the same freedom as men and yet women were party to the revolution.

After the first declaration was made by the womens movement, there was a backlash from a host of quarters. This served to strengthen the womens movement as after the declaration, the Movement expanded to the Seneca Falls. A series of meetings were held across the country up to the outbreak of the civil war.

On the basis of the evidence attained in this paper, during the initial stages, the issues the women were facing were uniform. They were simply unhappy about the status they held especially in marriage. There rights were also limited in nature. It is on this position a view is taken positing that the Women Rights Movement was unified by the state of events in the American state. The unfair and unjust American society against women in a uniform manner was the major unifying force for the movement.

The civil war and reconstruction served to dilute the women movements unity. It is argued that as tensions soared between the North and the South, many women activists sought to devout their energies purely to abolition of slavery. Further to this, after the war, republicans who were lobbying for black suffrage attacked the movement further splitting it. In 1869, Anthony and Stanton split from the movement to form National Woman Suffrage Association. In response, a rival group, American Woman Suffrage Association, was formed. However, in 1890, the two groups merged despite their differences to form National American Woman Suffrage Association.The American civil war was the major distraction that led to divisions in the movement.  Attacks from the Republicans presents the other cause for the divisions witnessed in the movement.

Another source of division was based on racial prejudices affecting the movement. The white population felt they were of superior standing than the rest. The formation of the African American suffrage association gives support to this viewpoint. The rise of the younger generation of women activists replacing the veterans was also a cause for alarm as it raised suspicion in the women movements (Clinton and Lunardini, 2000). However these were short-lived distractions which were later dealt with as the wrangling was resolved leading to the merger of the rival groups.

Conclusion
The Women Rights Movement achieved relatively unmatched success. The movement was steadfast and remained united in its quest for a just society. At the beginning, there were obstacles, but through resilience, the movement withered all the storms to emerge victorious.