Why Voting Matters on Women’s Equality Day
August 26 is Women’s Equality Day which commemorates the passage of the 19th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution that gave women the right to vote. It’s a day that calls upon all Americans to continue fighting for women’s rights and women’s struggle for gender equality.
How do we do that? By voting.
In President Obama’s Women’s Equality Day presidential proclamation today, he said:
In the many decades since suffragists organized and mobilized, countless advocates and leaders have picked up the mantle and moved our Nation and our world forward. Today, young women in America grow up knowing an historic truth — that not only can they cast a vote, but they can also run for office and help shape the very democracy that once left them out. For these women, and for generations of women to come, we must keep building a more equal America — whether through the stories we tell about our Nation’s history or the faces we display on our country’s currency. On Women’s Equality Day, as we recognize the accomplishments that so many women fought so hard to achieve, we rededicate ourselves to tackling the challenges that remain and expanding opportunity for women and girls everywhere.
To create the “more equal America” that President Obama describes, we must turn to the ballot box. We can create a future that offers more equality for U.S. women by voting for candidates for public office who support policies and initiatives that expand opportunities and rights for women.
By casting our ballot each election, we have the opportunity to provide girls and young women communities where they can receive a quality education and be protected from violence and discrimination. They are looking to us — eligible voters — to fashion this future by participating in elections and making educated decisions about candidates and ballot initiatives.
So to honor the women and allies who “marched, advocated and organized,” make sure that you are registered to vote in November and then cast your vote in the November election. Let’s keep the women’s rights movement moving forward.
Voting matters. Become a registered voter today. Learn more about how you can cast your ballot in the next election.
