AMENDMENT XIX

THE RIGHT OF CITIZENS OF THE UNITED STATES TO VOTE SHALL NOT BE DENIED OR ABRIDGED BY THE UNITED STATES OR BY ANY STATE ON ACCOUNT OF SEX.

On August 18, 1920, Tennessee became the last state needed to ratify the 19th Amendment. A proclamation was issue on August 26, 1920 declaring the 19th Amendment ratified and part of the U.S. Constitution.  (Source: Women’s Vote Centennial)

In recognition of this significant historical event, Historic Hawai‘i Foundation convened a round-table of nonprofit, governmental and educational organizations in November, 2019 and January, 2020 to discuss how best to recognize and honor this momentous anniversary. The consensus was to weave the theme through events during the year, encourage voter education and share the established and less well known stories of women in Hawaiian history –helping to highlight how far we’ve come.

As part of these efforts, HHF has launched the Hawai‘i Women’s Suffrage Centennial Commemoration website. The site is a collaborative effort and encourages public groups to share relevant events, opportunities to advocate for civic education and profiles of notable women in Hawaiian history as well as those today who continue to impact our community in a positive way.

WOMEN’S SUFFRAGE CENTENNIAL COMMEMORATION WEBSITE

 

Themes that emerged from the round table include:

  • When women thrive communities prosper.
  • Unearthing hidden stories of notable women and, when relevant, the historic sites associated with them.
  • Civic engagement.

Engaging Hawai‘i in this significant event we aim to:

  • Use the platform of the centennial to create public awareness, education, and inspiration.
  • Apply the lessons from the past to the present.
  • Empower girls to tell their own stories.
  • Utilize place-based storytelling.
  • Share civic education and a call to action for voter registration
  • Connect understanding and appreciation of the past to issues and achievements of the present and hope and aspirations for the future.

 

Round table participants and interested groups include:

• 88 Block Walks
• AHL
• Center for Oral History, UH Mānoa
• Common Cause Hawai‘i
• Department of American Studies, UH Mānoa
• Distinctive Women in Hawaiian History
• Hawai‘i State Commission on the Status of Women
• Hawai‘i State Women’s Legislative Caucus
• Hawai‘i Women in Filmmaking
• Historic Hawai‘i Foundation
• Junior League of Honolulu
• League of Women Voters Honolulu
• Office of the State Attorney General
• Public Access Room, Hawai‘i State Capitol
• The Outdoor Circle
• UH Commission on the Status of Women
• Women’s Fund of Hawai‘i
• Women’s Studies Department, UH Mānoa
• YWCA

We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men and women are created equal.

                                                                                                            ~Elizabeth Cady Stanton