Women's caucus to honor right to vote

The Monroe County Democratic Women's Caucus will mark the 85th anniversary of women's suffrage Friday at the Women's Equality Day Dinner.\nMembers of the organization, which normally meets for breakfast the first Friday of every month at the Village Deli, 409 E. Kirkwood Ave., say it's important to remember such a pivotal movement in U.S. history.\n"(Women's suffrage) seemed like a good thing to celebrate, since Friday, Aug. 26 is the exact date after all the states ratified the 19th amendment in 1920," said Regina Moore, Bloomington City Clerk and chair of the caucus. \n"Tennessee was the last state -- I think they were doing it one by one, and the governor even called a special session to do it right then and there. It came down to one vote -- 'One man, one vote!' as they used to say," she added.\nThat vote was made by a young legislator named Henry Wade Rogers, Moore said. He had received a telegram from his mother that read: "Do the right thing." \n"Rogers opposed the amendment but voted for it because his mother was a widow who owned land like any man would, and she couldn't vote while her farmhands could," Moore said.\nMargaret Joseph, media coordinator for the women's caucus dinner, said she believes being a part of a group that's there to remember people worked very hard in the 19th century for women's suffrage is something special.\n"Women have only been able to vote 85 years," Joseph said. "Before that, except in a few Western states like Wyoming, women didn't get to vote, and people don't realize that, especially young people."\nThe evening's warm-up act will be WomenSpeak Readers Theater, a presentation highlighting the fight for women's suffrage, its progress and political complacency.\n"We've put together a multimedia showcase that will have visual images and music, and we have women reading speeches by important women in history, from Susan B. Anthony ... leading up to Hillary Rodham Clinton, Sandra Day O'Connor and Nancy Pelosi," said Susan Sandberg, who wrote WomenSpeak.\n"There are 435 seats in Congress and only 59 are occupied by women, and we could use a few more," said Sandberg.\nMoore said she believes events like the caucus' dinner remind citizens of the struggles and dedication that people have had in the past.\n"And you know today in order to vote all you have to do is to turn 18, and I think it's easy to forget that people dedicated their entire lives to something we just take for granted," she said.\nAn audience of about 200 is expected for the night, including the president of the Monroe County School Board, Monroe County council members and most Democratic city and county officials will be present or represented.\nThe event is to be held at Phi Delta Kappa International Inc., 408 N. Union St., and will benefit women with political aspirations in Monroe County communities. Rep. Julia Carson, D-Ind., will make a speech.