9.2 Women in Public Life What new and active roles were women taking in the workplace and in politics?

Women’s Traditional Roles Before the Civil War, most married women worked at home By the end of the 19 th century, many women had to work outside the home to earn money Farm women continued to work as they always had; however, women in towns and cities began having more opportunities to work

Continued By 1900, one in five American women held jobs, with 25% of them worked in manufacturing They typically held the least skilled positions and were paid only half as much as men They held jobs in offices, stores, and classrooms if they were educated If they were not, they took jobs as domestic workers

Continued Other positions included laundresses, scrubwomen, maids Unmarried immigrant women did domestic labor, took in piecework, or cared for boarders at home

New Reforms Dangerous conditions, long hours, and low wages caused women to fight for reforms The Triangle Shirtwaist Fire in NYC killed 146 young workers, and spurred the cause for reform Women who became active in public life attended colleges consistently for the first time

Organizations and Suffrage In 1896, African American women founded the National Association of Colored Women (NACW), which created nurseries, reading rooms, and kindergartens Women’s crusade for suffrage, or the right to vote, began at the Seneca Falls Convention in 1848 The movement split over whether to support the 14 th and 15 th Amendments, which granted the right to vote to African American men, but not women

Continued Susan B. Anthony led the opposition By 1890, suffragists united in the National American Woman Suffrage Association (NAWSA) They had three approaches to win the vote: –trying to convince state legislature –Clarifying the provisions of the 14 th Amendment –Pushing for a national constitutional amendment