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Oppression Of Women

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The oppression of women has been a constant trend throughout American history. While the US has made advancements to the equality of women, to this day women are not treated equally to men. (Intro - do last) White women in the upper middle and working class saw a correlation between the oppression of slaves and the oppression they faced as women, both treated as inferiors in society. Many women supported the abolitionist movement to express their ideas of equality and the push for universal suffrage. The abolitionist movement was originally created to ensure the ending of slavery. Women joined the movement under the impression of fighting for slaves’ basic rights and suffrage would guarantee theirs as well. The First Wave of feminism was born and tempered during this movement, training women to be able to conceptualize and express their feminist consciousness. One of the most well-known women that was both an abolitionist and feminist was Elizabeth C. Stanton. Deeply involved in the reform movement she was a leader of the suffrage movement and author of the “Declaration of Sentiments” calling upon other women to stand up and petition for their rights. Many suffragists such as Stanton argued they were human beings first and females second, implying their lives consisted of more than just their sex roles. They also argued if given equal access to education and opportunity, women would achieve the same level men could. These arguments challenged the basic nineteenth-century

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