4. Who Were The Antis, Really
 |
| SOURCE: Josephine Jewell Dodge |
 |
| SOURCE |
Though many of the “Antis” did indeed come from
wealthy families with notable names, they were not the only “butterflies of
fashion,”[1]
far removed from the reality of society beyond their “unimpeachable circle”[2] as
the Suffragists had claimed. Instead, their approach to the Suffrage Movement
and who could participate amongst their ranks was equally exclusive as the
Suffragists who also denied the voices of women of color, immigrant status, and
the working class.[3] The image of “lazy,
comfortable, sheltered creatures, caring nothing for the miseries of the poor”
that suffragette Florence Kelley so painfully painted was one that
misrepresented a group of women who had long records of public service and
education.
They participated on school, historic, and health boards as well as were active members of community and national associations such as the Research Committee of the Education and Industrial Union, the Welfare Department of the National Civic Federation of the Woman’s Trade Union League, the American Society for Labor Legislation, and held connections with the State Commission on Economy and Efficiency.[4] They were educated in public and private schools such as Notre Dame, members of the Bar, cared for invalid family members as results of the Civil War, and were employed in medical arenas such as the Orthopedic Clinic for Children.[5]
To cast off even a small sampling of the strong, socially active force behind the Anti-Suffrage Movement as selfish and uncaring is an execution of character to those who fought for what they felt was right. Though a small sampling of women, they were not. The Massachusetts Women’s Anti-Suffrage Association boasted 36,761 members alone. Perhaps the most famous nationwide association was the National Association Opposed to Woman Suffrage (NAOWS) which was started in 1911 by a woman who spent much of her wealth and privilege petitioning for the creation of day care facilities for working mothers, Josephine Dodge.[6] This organization held branches throughout the United States, though held most of its popularity in the northeastern states.[7]
They participated on school, historic, and health boards as well as were active members of community and national associations such as the Research Committee of the Education and Industrial Union, the Welfare Department of the National Civic Federation of the Woman’s Trade Union League, the American Society for Labor Legislation, and held connections with the State Commission on Economy and Efficiency.[4] They were educated in public and private schools such as Notre Dame, members of the Bar, cared for invalid family members as results of the Civil War, and were employed in medical arenas such as the Orthopedic Clinic for Children.[5]
 |
| SOURCE: Kate Douglas Wiggin |
To cast off even a small sampling of the strong, socially active force behind the Anti-Suffrage Movement as selfish and uncaring is an execution of character to those who fought for what they felt was right. Though a small sampling of women, they were not. The Massachusetts Women’s Anti-Suffrage Association boasted 36,761 members alone. Perhaps the most famous nationwide association was the National Association Opposed to Woman Suffrage (NAOWS) which was started in 1911 by a woman who spent much of her wealth and privilege petitioning for the creation of day care facilities for working mothers, Josephine Dodge.[6] This organization held branches throughout the United States, though held most of its popularity in the northeastern states.[7]
[1] Manuela Thurner. ""Better Citizens Without
the Ballot": American AntiSuffrage Women and Their Rationale During the
Progressive Era." Journal of Women's History 5, no. 1
(1993): 33-60. https://muse.jhu.edu/ (accessed April 28, 2019).
[2] Ibid 37
[3] Ibid, 37
[4] Massachusetts Women. Anti-Suffrage
Essays. Boston, MA: Forum Publications of
Boston, 1916.
[5] Ibid
[6] Allison Lange, PhD. "National Association Opposed
to Woman Suffrage." History of U.S. Woman's Suffrage. 2015. Accessed April
28, 2019. http://www.crusadeforthevote.org/naows-opposition.
[7] Ibid 1