African American Women's Suffrage

Because of their unique identity and discrimination, African American women were forced to band together. They started women’s clubs to eradicate stereotypes and to promote a positive view of the black race. The club movement dealt with issues common to African American women including women’s suffrage. The majority of these clubs centered on a particular perspective, that of black women, and the interests important to them. They did not only advocate women’s suffrage because that was not their only concern. Discrimination and violence were two of the most frequently occurring issues in the lives of black women. They faced discrimination that other women could not understand and as a result did not seek to end. Even more serious was the violent crimes committed

After a mob threatened her life, she was forced to leave Memphis, but still continued her advocacy for African Americans. Her initial advocacy concerned all African Americans, but later on in her life she began to focus on African American women. Ida B. Wells summarized her work for the people of her race by saying “If this work can contribute in any way toward proving this, and at the same time arouse the conscience of the American people to a demand for justice to every citizen, and punishment by law for the lawless, I shall feel I have done my race a service.” She speaks about justice for all, not her race or the people she could identify with, but every human being. This different outlook separated Wells from people like Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony. Her work as a journalist opened eyes to the reality of what African Americans experienced. Wells, a prominent civil rights leader, founded the Alpha Suffrage Club, the first black women's suffrage group. This group was unique in its strong focus on suffrage compared to the other groups that incorporated many issues. Many women’s clubs sought important goals for African American women, but were not united until the formation of