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Women's Suffrage Museum Events & Cultural Center

Mission statement for Suffrage Coalition Inc.’s Project: Women’s Suffrage Museum – Events & Culture Center - Locate and preserve the epic history of the movement that brought democracy to the other half of our citizens. Use accurate, immersive storytelling to inspire future generations to value their rights and faithfully perform their duties as citizens.

Mary Church Terrell (1863-1954) TN

Mary Church Terrell
  • Began her public support of women’s suffrage in 1891 and actively worked within the National American Woman Suffrage Association.
  • Was a close collaborator with Susan B. Anthony and Alice Paul, leveraging her status as a highly educated Black woman to bridge the gap between women’s rights organizations and the Black community.
  • Advocated for the inclusion of Black women in the suffrage movement famously arguing that they need the vote to defend themselves against injustices.
  • Co-founded the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People.

Quotes:

“Lifting as we climb, onward and upward we go, struggling and striving and hoping that the buds and blossoms of our desires will burst into glorious fruition ere long.”

 

“Seeking no favors because of our color nor patronage because of our needs, we knock at the bar of justice and ask for an equal chance.”

 

“A White woman has only one handicap to overcome — that of sex. I have two — both sex and race. ... Colored men have only one — that of race. Colored women are the only group in this country who have two heavy handicaps to overcome, that of race as well as that of sex.”

 

Called Susan B. Anthony “every woman’s champion and friend.”