9. Women Already Have Everything That They Need
Congressman William Mulkey testified to the United States Congress in 1915, the year that women were granted suffrage, that “The great cry is that woman should be allowed to vote to protect themselves. Against what? Do men oppress them? Do we act toward them as though they were not American citizens or entitled to the protection of our laws? On the contrary, we show them every consideration, provide for their safety, and protect their interest always and everywhere.” This quote comes from Congressional Record: The Proceedings and Debates, 1915.
After all, men were always voting with the best interests of women in mind. Beyond that, they were working outside the home so that they could provide their wives with shelter, food, and everything that they needed. In turn, they were able to do what they wanted to do (or were supposed to want to do): remain at home and raise their children. As a result, women should feel indebted to men, by principle, for meeting all of their needs and wants.
What men (and women) who used this argument didn’t realize is that they were refusing to grant what women wanted: equal participation as citizens by giving them the right to vote.