Welcome to Women of the Century, a commemoration of the 19th Amendment, a major step toward the universal right to vote in the United States.
Here you will find interviews with trailblazing American women, stories that cover the suffrage movement’s victories and shortcomings, augmented reality experiences that bring alive aspects of the suffragists’ struggles and triumphs, videos that show the amazing work women are doing in our communities and much more. Many names you will know, some you will not. All have something to teach us.
Our hope is that this project inspires women, girls and their supporters to work toward a better America for the next century.
Live storytelling: Six trailblazing women share personal stories in special event
The former secretary of state talks about speaking up as a woman and the importance of calling out wrongs. “It took me a long time to find my voice. But having found it, I’m not going to shut up,” she says. Read the Q&A.
Black women played a major role in obtaining the right to vote, even though many of them would not truly enjoy the right themselves to the same extent until decades later. Learn about Sojourner Truth, Anna Julia Cooper, Mary Church Terrell, Ida B. Wells and 16 others. Read the story.
Columnist Nancy Armour says it’s impossible to overstate the role sports have played in where women are today. When Title IX passed in 1972, less than 300,000 girls were playing high school sports. Now that number is more than 3.4 million. Read the opinion column.
Women of the Century didn’t succeed despite adversity, but often because of it. We offer a representative list of 100 women who’ve made an impact on our culture, our communities, and our country over the past 100 years. These women are imperfect, empowering and important. Explore our list.
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Womankind, a new video series from the Humankind franchise, will showcase the untold stories of everyday women who are doing incredible things. The women of Womankind are entrepreneurs, small business owners, children, mentors, volunteers, teachers, pilots, mothers, friends, grandmothers. They are changing the world one act, one business, one relationship at a time. Watch more.
In Wyoming, women have been voting since 1870, 20 years before the territory became a state and 50 years before the 19th Amendment was ratified. In 1893, Colorado became the first state to grant women the vote by public referendum. Read story.
Learn about notable suffragists Carrie Chapman Catt, Mary Church Terrell and Elizabeth Cady Stanton in our augmented reality experience, “Heroes of Women’s Suffrage.” Listen to key passages from their speeches as the scenes come to life, animated in a graphic novel format. Download the latest version of the USA TODAY app on your Android or iOS AR-capable device. Open the app, and look for Augmented Reality in Sections at the bottom of your screen.
The USA TODAY Network is also recognizing influential women in each state, territory and Washington, D.C. These women imagined and created. They protested and they fought. Ultimately, they transformed our country. In all, we’re amplifying the accomplishments of more than 500 diverse, ground-breaking, brave, thoughtful women.
These Women of the Century tell us how their fight for women and girls supports everyone. In this podcast episode, you’ll hear from Me Too movement founder Tarana Burke, tennis icon and LGBTQ activist Billie Jean King, Flint, Michigan, whistleblower Dr. Mona Hanna-Attisha, and immigrant reform advocate Cristina Jiménez Moreta. Listen here.
Superstar singer Gloria Estefan talks about her parents’ flight from Cuba, her roots and her comeback from being paralyzed in a 1990 bus crash. “Be in each and every moment because that’s the only thing you really have that’s guaranteed,” she says. Read the Q&A.
Women’s suffrage is commemorated in many landmarks around the country. Two statues, the Tennessee Woman Suffrage Memorial in Knoxville, Tennessee, and the Let’s Have Tea statue in Rochester, New York, recognize key figures in the movement to ratify the 19th Amendment. Explore these statues in our augmented reality experience, available on your phone and within the Augmented Reality section of the USA TODAY app. Learn more.
Women of the Century: Recognizing the accomplishments of women from the last 100 years
USA TODAY
