On a hot August day in 1920, a 24-year-old Tennessee House of Representative listened to an issue that has been simmering since well before the Civil War-woman suffrage. The movement had begun in 1848 in Seneca Falls, New York, but it took 30 years to get the amendment introduced in Congress. By August 1920, the issue of women’s suffrage was one state shy of ratification. Thirty-five states had passed it. Many Anti-Suffragists had good reason to hope that if Tennessee failed to pass the amendment, the law would die.
Thus, the “war of the roses” ensued. The Pro-Suffragists representatives wore yellow roses and those against wore red. In the first roll call, Rep. Banks Turner came over to the Suffragist’s side and the vote was deadlocked at 48 for and 48 against. The second roll was taken and it still remained at 48 to 48. With wilted roses and frayed nerves, the third roll call commenced. With a blatant red rose on his jacket, the 24- year-old Representative Harry Burn—the youngest member of the legislature—suddenly broke the deadlock.
Despite his red rose, he voted in favor of the house and the legislature erupted into pandemonium. With his “yea,” Burn had delivered universal suffrage to all American women. The outraged opponents began chasing him around the room and in order to escape the angry mob, he hid in the Capitol attic.
When tempers cooled, Burn was asked to explain the red rose on his lapel and his “yellow-rose” vote. He responded that he had a note (a telegram) from his mother in his suit breast pocket. In this note, his mother “urged” him to do the right thing and vote in favor of the amendment. Mrs. Burn reportedly wrote to her son: “Don’t forget to be a good boy and help Mrs. Catt put the ‘rat’ in ratification.”
As Burn explained, “I know that a mother’s advice is always safest for her boy to follow, and my mother wanted me to vote for ratification.” He continued to state that “as any good boy knows, you always listen to your mother.” On August 24, 1920, the governor of Tennessee signed the bill and two days later, the 19th Amendment became the national law.
I found this historical tidbit entertaining. Even more astounding were the strong defiance of interest groups representing the liquor and cigarette industry for fear that women would “clean up” society. The Western states were the first to allow women to vote in hopes of having more women move west. In fact, Wyoming was the first state to grant voting rights to women and the first to elect a female governor in 1924.
On November 2, 1920, over eight million women across the U.S. voted in elections for the first time. It took over 60 years for the remaining 12 states to follow. Mississippi was the last state on March 22, 1984. Achieving this milestone required decades of struggle and protest.
We congratulate the newly confirmed California Supreme Court Chief Justice Tani G. Cantil-Sakauye who is the first Filipino or Asian-American and the only second woman to lead the state’s highest court. There is no denying that the long journey for women in the U.S. for social and political equality has come a long way. However, to stop here is a mistake. There is always work to be done.