Suffrage Centennials

The photo of Edna Buckman Kearns and the phone she used “go together.” It’s a simple matter. Any “deals” or “wishes” my mother made while collaborating with me during the 1980s are null and void if they weren’t endorsed by me. And the old-fashioned phone was also promised to me by my mother. It’s the type of artifact that is symbolic of the women-centered grassroots organizing that’s part of the collection now released to researchers here and around the world.

It is essential in assembling the collection of Edna Buckman Kearns that belongs in an archive dedicated to those activists working for women obtaining the right to vote. Were they expected to wait until injustice had been wiped from the US scene?

No, they rolled up their sleeves and started the long journey to freedom. Even today, I can say with absolute certainty that there have not been women sitting in the nation’s chair of the US Presidency.

I have been fascinated by my maternal grandmother since I was a small child. And I have been working as a volunteer for 40 plus years to bring her story out of the shadows. There is the telephone she used for suffrage activities in the black and white image that’s part of the Edna Kearns collection that was fundamental when telling the tale of Edna and me in the SUNY Press edition released in 2021.

Today, December 25, 1882, is Edna’s birthday. Happy birthday, Edna. You would be 142 years old today. Thank you and others who started the ball rolling. It’s still rolling.

SuffrageCentennials.com has been publishing since 2013. It is now supporting an equal rights amendment to the US Constitution.

by Marguerite Kearns

Go ahead, Edna Buckman Kearns. Use your telephone and ask the same question. If the nation to the south of us can elect a woman to head its government, we can too.

This is another example of other nations on Planet Earth being ahead of us in the US..

Another example is an amendment to the US Constitution. Last year, 2023, we drew attention to the fact that the United States is backward. Its women have been voting for over 100 years. A new team has taken over the effort and they have built on prior efforts.

Are they successful? It’s another year and another opportunity to set things in place. Instead we women have an opportunity to choose between two old tired men. What about Kamala Harris, the nation’s first woman elected vice president? She’s in the number 2 spot and is patiently waiting to see what will happen next about the 2024 election.

We at SuffrageCentennials.com have been publishing since 2013. How much longer must we wait? The US Supreme Court isn’t helping either right now. This is classic.

by Marguerite Kearns

Again, we are the laughing stock of Planet Earth. We aren’t able to elect a woman head of state. Mexico can do it. But the United States can’t. This is also true with adding an equal rights amendment to the US Constitution. US women have been working on this for more than 100 years.

Is this an issue because an equal rights amendment is a reform of the current top-down social and economic system? Must we have a horizontal social system to allow this. Some of our supporters say “YES.” Others are not sure. They may be struggling with “internalized oppression.” This is an insidious condition. The roots of patriarchy run deep in the United States.

Start with yourself, folks. This is a serious question.

SuffrageCentennials.com has been publishing since 2013. How much longer must women wait, Mr. President? This question hasn’t changed in more than 100 years.

Join the ERA Coalition. It’s free. Plenty of specially designed graphics, photos, etc. are available for you to use. There are training videos, special programs, and much more on the horizon.

We’re carrying on the work. This website is geared to organizers and planners across the nation when they’re looking for inspiration and passion online to inspire them and their organizations.

SuffrageCentennials.com has been publishing since 2013.

by Marguerite Kearns

Every year there are those like me and many many others who repeat the same refrain, “We will never give up.” We support the addition of an equal rights amendment to the US Constitution. US women have been voting for more than 100 years. It ‘s a rite of passage that the United States has never traveled, and it’s long overdue.

The United States has never had a woman president of the United States. A prejudice against women remains deep in the US social infrastructure. Photographer Peter Norby returns to one side of his nature…his Chinese DNA from his mother mixed with his father’s Anglo roots. He prepares traditional offerings for the Chinese New Year. Other folks also carry on this tradition. Check out SuffrageWagon.org for other variations. And good luck, the other ERA advocates mumble loud and clear. The continuing work is the result of another generation entering the fray. We will never give up.

SuffrageCentennials.com has been publishing since 2013.

This date is recommended by the current US President on an optional basis. He distributes a press release of support.

We’re advocating something more. This includes that August 26th become a federal holiday and that women around the world support this new holiday.

We also support an equal rights amendment be added to the US Constitution. Support the events and educational opportunities that are ongoing.

SuffrageCentennials.com has been publishing since 2013.

Marguerite Kearns introduces the book, "An Unfinished Revolution" from Marguerite Kearns on Vimeo.