II.

In Colonial America

The women’s suffrage movement originated in the United States during the 19th century. In colonial America, as elsewhere in the world, civil law did not recognize the equality of men and women. The perception of inequality, which included the belief that women lacked the capacity to reason as soundly as men, provided the basis for denying women the right to vote. Even before the American Revolution (1776-1783), however, American women participated in public life somewhat more freely than European women. In most colonies land ownership, not gender, determined the right to vote. Although females possessed only limited property rights, women from families that owned property could sometimes vote, particularly if the male head of household was for some reason incapacitated. In Massachusetts women property holders had voting privileges from 1691 to 1780. In this period, groups such as the American Quakers, and some individuals, notably the Anglo-American political philosopher Thomas Paine, also argued that women should possess the right to vote.

After the American Revolution, the framers of the Constitution of the United States reserved decisions about qualifications for voting to the individual states. By the early 19th century, most states had dropped the property qualification and extended voting rights to all adult males. Ironically, the extension of democracy to a broader base of men represented a double setback for women. By definition, laws giving only men the right to vote now excluded women solely on the basis of their gender. In addition, by eliminating property ownership as a requirement for voting, these laws deprived women of the only legal claim for a right to vote that they previously had.