Women's suffrage, or the crusade to gain women's equal right to vote and run for political office, was a difficult fight that required activists in the United United almost 100 years to win. On August 26, 1920, the 19th Amendment to the United States Constitution was ratified, declaring that all women had the same rights and responsibilities of citizenship as men, and on Election Day, millions of women exercised their right to vote for United States. very first time. The women's suffrage movement is thought to have begun with the publication of Mary Wollstonecraft's A Vindication of the Rights of Woman in 1792. Wollstonecraft is considered the "mother of feminism" and wrote about sexual double standards between men and women, demanding equality for both as human beings. In modern times she is considered a difference or communitarian feminist "in her honoring of women's natural talents and in her insistence that women not be measured by the standards of men" (Lewis, 2011, para. 3), advocating the The female focus of “emphasis on duty in family and civic relationships” (Lewis, 2011, para. 3). She lived the reality of abuse and oppression and drew on her experiences to bring these revulsions to public awareness. During the 19th century, with the gradual expansion of male suffrage, women became more active in seeking their own suffrage. It was not until 1893 that women gained the right to vote nationwide; . American women did not gain the right to vote until after World War I (Women's Suffrage, 2011). The campaign in America for women's suffrage began in earnest before the Civil War. Reform groups thrived across the country, including clubs of temperance, religious... at the center of the card... the result was a worldwide event that changed the face of politics in America. The right to vote gave political power to women in the United States and recognized the importance of their voices as citizens. Works Cited Lewis, J. J. (2011). The legacy of Mary Wollstonecraft. Retrieved from http://womenshistory.about.com/od/wollstonecraft/a/wollstonecraft-legacy.htmWomen's Suffrage. (2011). School site. Retrieved from http://teacher.scholastic.com/activities/suffrage/history.htmKelly, M. (2011). Seneca Falls Convention. Retrieved from http://americanhistory.about.com/od/womenssuffrage/a/senecafalls.htmTindall, G. B., & Shi, D. E. (2010). America a narrative history eighth edition. New York, NY: WW Norton & Company, Inc. The Fight for Women's Suffrage. (2011). The History Channel website. Retrieved from http://www.history.com/topics/the-fight-for-womens-suffrage