Episode 24: The Women’s Suffrage Movement

Ep 24: The Women's Suffrage Movement


Episode Date: December 4, 2025

In The Women’s Suffrage Movement, Dr. Rabaka lifts up the intertwined histories of women’s rights, abolitionism, racial justice, and democratic reform. This episode serves as a companion to Episode 23, The Abolitionist Movement, deepening our understanding of how these movements shaped one another.

Listeners are guided through the influential work of:

  • , journalist and anti-lynching activist who challenged racism within the suffrage movement
  • , educator and civil rights leader whose advocacy expanded voting rights and social reform efforts
  • , poet and abolitionist who emphasized collective liberation with her reminder that “we are all bound up together”
  • and , key early leaders whose legacies illuminate both the movement’s achievements and tensions

The episode examines the evolution of suffrage organizing, the contributions of Black women’s clubs, the roles of Indigenous, Latina, and Asian American women, and the limits of the Nineteenth Amendment, which granted women the right to vote while leaving many women of color disenfranchised for another half century.

As Dr. Rabaka reflects:
“To understand the Women’s Suffrage Movement is to understand that the struggle for voting rights has always been a struggle over who counts as fully human in our democracy.”

This episode contextualizes the victories, challenges, and unfinished work of women’s activism, reminding us why this history matters now more than ever.

The Woman's Suffrage Playlist

From Suffrage Songs to Feminist Anthems: PlaylistNotes

by Reiland Rabaka
This playlist is both asoundtrack and a history lesson. It honors the songs of women who demanded justice, freedom, and equality in their own time, while amplifying the voices of artists still calling for change today. From the parlor songs of the 19th century suffrage movement to the anthems of the civil rights era and the feminist pop hits of the 21st century, these tracks remind us that music has always been one of the most powerful weapons in the struggle for democracy.
Just as suffragists usedspeeches, petitions, pamphlets, and marchesto make their case, women across generations have turned to music as amegaphone for democracy. These songs educated, inspired, and united communities—providing courage in the face of ridicule, resistance, and repression. Each melody carried a message: that women’s voices matter, that women’s rights are human rights, and that the fight for equality must never be silenced.
Listening to this playlist, we hear not just entertainment but aliving archive of resistance and resilience. We hear the echoes of women who risked arrest, ridicule, and violence so that their daughters and granddaughters could inherit fuller freedoms. And we hear the ongoing struggle—proof that the spirit of suffrage lives on in every movement for gender justice and human dignity today.

Historical & Folk Traditions

  • “Keep Woman in Her Sphere” (Anonymous, 19th century)
    A satirical suffrage song sung at rallies, mocking arguments that women belonged only in the home.
  • “The March of the Women” - Ethel Smyth (1911)
    Written by British suffragist composer Smyth, it became an anthem for women’s suffrage worldwide.
  • “Bread and Roses” - James Oppenheim (1911; adapted into song later)
    A labor and suffrage slogan that linked women’s rights to economic justice.
  • “Which Side Are You On?” - Florence Reece (1931)
    A coal miners’ protest song later adopted by women’s and civil rights movements.
  • “Ain’t I a Woman?” (Spoken tradition, inspired by Sojourner Truth)
    Performed as dramatic readings and set to song by various artists, this speech-song bridges abolition and suffrage.

Jazz, Blues & Civil Rights Era

  • “Mississippi Goddam” - Nina Simone (1964)
    A blistering anthem of protest against racial and gender injustice.
  • “Respect” - Aretha Franklin (1967)
    A demand for dignity that became a rallying cry for both women’s liberation and civil rights.
  • “To Be Young, Gifted and Black” - Nina Simone (1969)
    Empowering Black women and communities, echoing suffragists’ fight for recognition.
  • “I Am Woman” - Helen Reddy (1972)
    The unofficial anthem of the 1970s Women’s Liberation Movement.
  • “You Don’t Own Me” - Lesley Gore (1963)
    A bold declaration of autonomy and independence.

Contemporary Women’s Empowerment

  • “Just a Girl” - No Doubt (1995)
    A sardonic critique of women’s restricted roles in society.
  • “Q.U.E.E.N.” - Janelle Monáe feat. Erykah Badu (2013)
    A funky, futuristic feminist anthem that pushes beyond categories.
  • “***Flawless” - Beyoncé (2013)
    Incorporates Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s words on feminism: “We should all be feminists.”
  • “Quiet” -MILCK (2017)
    Written for the Women’s March, a haunting hymn of resistance and solidarity.
  • “Run the World (Girls)” - Beyoncé (2011)
    A global pop anthem of unapologetic women’s power.

Closing Track

  • “Fight Song” - Rachel Platten (2015)
    Contemporary rallying cry that embodies suffragists’ spirit of persistence and resilience.

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