San Diego Marks 99th Anniversary Of Women Getting Right To Vote With March, Rally

Speaker 1: 00:00 Women dressed in white will be leading a march and rally in Balboa Park. Tomorrow it's the kickoff to a 100th anniversary celebration of American women winning the right to vote. The women's Museum of California is sponsoring the event, which will feature speakers on the history of the suffrage movement and challenges that still face women taking their equal part in the political process. Joining me is Ann Hoiberg. She's board president of the California Women's museum and Anne, welcome. Oh Maureen, it's wonderful to be here. Now the 100th anniversary of women's suffrage is really next year when the states ratified the 19th amendment to the constitution, but the actual amendment was approved by Congress in the summer of 1919 so my question is, will this be a year long celebration at the women's museum? Speaker 2: 00:52 Yes, it will be a year long celebration of the hundredth anniversary of the 19th amendment. Speaker 1: 00:59 Can you give us some of the highlights of how women in San Diego joined in the long battle for women's right to vote? Speaker 2: 01:05 Well here in California, we had a women's suffrage on our ballot twice first in 1896 and Susan B, Anthony thought it was so important that California come on board. She ran the campaign here in California. She actually came to San Diego and it was standing room only one. She spoke at the Methodist Church and then the next day, Flora Kimball had a luncheon in her home, a national city. So it was a big deal here in San Diego. Susan B. Anthony was here. That was 1896 it went down to defeat. In 1911 Dr Charlotte Baker headed the campaign and she was determined, even though she was an obstetrician, Dr Charlotte Baker believed that women should have the right to vote. So she was determined and headed the campaign here. And it won in 1911 and I think it was because Dr Charlotte Baker and her cadre of suffered just insisted that men vote for women getting the right to vote. Speaker 1: 02:10 And, and she was from here in San Diego, is that right? Speaker 2: 02:13 Well actually she and her husband, Dr Fred Baker, moved here in 1888 no, they were from Massachusetts, I believe. Our Maryland, two doctors arriving in San Diego. Can you imagine how thrilled everyone was here was about such an amazing thing, two doctors at once. She was not in the greatest health, so it was important for her to be an a mile climate. Speaker 1: 02:40 How did women respond to the responsibility of being able to vote Speaker 2: 02:45 well, that was a concern, particularly of Carrie Chapman, Catt and Carrie Chapman. Catt founded the League of women voters and she believed once women were given the right to vote, that it was important that an organization such as the League would help women realize the importance of voting and to know what the issues are. And so that's what the league has been doing and the league celebrates its hundredth anniversary next year also. Well, tell me what's happening at tomorrow's March and rally in Balboa Park? Well, we're going to start out with some music by Bodhi tree concerts and they're going to sing songs of suffrage and that will be from four 45 until five then at five o'clock I'll give a brief summary, even though it took 72 years for women to get the right to vote in the United States. I'll give a brief history of that. Then I'm going to turn it over to Cheryl Mallory Johnson and she had the 1619 project here in San Diego and I've asked her to speak about, well what happened to black women, even though all women in the United States, we're granted the right to vote in 1920 what about black women? Speaker 2: 04:16 What about black women in the south? We know they weren't able to vote, but what is that history? So she'll bring us up to date on that. And I've also asked Margo poor us to speak about the Latina community. What about Latino women? So she'll give us an update on that and we'll also talk about native Americans and the Chinese immigrants. And you'll be talking about not just the history of women of color, but also the challenges that they still face in claiming their, their full right to vote. That's exactly correct. And we'll have some impersonators. I've asked, uh, Judy Foreman from the big kitchen to be Elizabeth Cady Stanton, and she's an expert on Elizabeth Katy stem. I've asked Shirley feral to be Susan B. Anthony, my good friend Beverly Hudson will be sojourner truth, talking about her work, insisting that black women were able to vote. And we'll also have flora Kimball from national city and Dr Charlotte Baker Plus Carrie Chapman Catt. So it'll be a full 45 minutes of presentations and performances. And when does the event start again? It starts at four 45 with Bodhi tree concert singing songs from suffrage. And then we'll start at five o'clock with presentations. I have been speaking with an Hoiberg board president of the California women's museum. And thank you so much. Oh, thank you. It's been such fun. Thanks. Speaker 3: 06:01 [inaudible].