San Antonio tourism leaders eye Legislature as new voting rights bill could have economic consequences
Texas is considered to be the next battleground over voting rights. Community members say they are concerned about the political fallout from a new voting rights bill entering the Texas Legislature, which could affect the Alamo Cityโs economy.
Female pilots fly over San Antonio in honor of 100th anniversary of womenโs right to vote
SAN ANTONIO โ In celebration of the 100th anniversary of the 19th amendment which gave women the right to vote, a team of female pilots flew over San Antonio on Friday. The planes then flew over Victor Braunig Lake and landed at Stinson Airport. Dana Perez - She will be flying a 1980 Beechcraft Bonanza A36 and will be piloting aircraft No. Information from Visit San Antonio doesnโt specify what type of aircraft she is expected to fly. To learn more about the women who were involved in the flyover, click here.
100 years after the 19th Amendment: Minnie Fisher Cunningham
SAN ANTONIO โ It was inequity in pay between her and her male colleagues that set pharmacist-turned-activist Minnie Fisher Cunningham on a mission to help Texas women get the right to vote in the early 1900s. Cunningham helped create the Texas Equal Suffrage Association and served as the first executive secretary of the League of Women Voters. She worked hard, forming critical political relationships and building grassroots support, which helped her accomplish her mission 100 years ago this month. Cunningham was part of a team, who met with then-President Woodrow Wilson, that successfully encouraged him to release a statement leaning toward suffrage. Cunningham was the first woman in Texas to run for U.S. Senate in 1928.
100 years after the 19th Amendment: Jovita Idar
SAN ANTONIO โ After leaving her job as a teacher, Mexican-American journalist Jovita Idar used her fatherโs weekly newspaper to advocate for womenโs rights. Through her writing for La Cronica โ and against the backdrop of the Mexican Revolution - Idar urged women to educate themselves so they wouldnโt have to rely on men. Her motto โ โWhen you educate a woman, you educate a family.โIdar joined the first Mexican congress in Laredo, and then founded the League of Mexican Women, becoming its first president. When the Texas Rangers arrived to shut down the paper because of her article, Idar stood in front of the door, refusing to allow them to enter. In 1921, she moved from Laredo to San Antonio, where she continued to be a voice for women and established a free kindergarten.
100 years after the 19th Amendment: Rena Maverick Green
SAN ANTONIO โ Rena Maverick Green worked as an artist, but in her spare time, she advocated tirelessly as a proponent for womenโs rights. She fought for womenโs suffrage in Washington D.C. and as a member of the National Womenโs Party of Texas. Green served as president of the San Antonio Equal Franchise Society โ helping register women to vote after the 19th Amendment passed. In 1924, Green helped establish the Conservation Society of San Antonio. She and the organization - which is still very active in San Antonio - have been credited for protecting and preserving the cityโs natural environments and historic structures, including The Missions.
100 years after the 19th Amendment: Mary Eleanor Brackenridge
SAN ANTONIO โ As we commemorate the 100th anniversary of womenโs suffrage, did you know that San Antonioโs own Mary Eleanor Brackenridge was the first woman to register to vote in Bexar County? A leader in Texas suffrage organizations, Brackenridge was considered a โlate bloomerโ when it came to activism. She was in her 70s when she published a pamphlet called, โThe Legal Status of Women in Texasโ and worked hard to revive the Texas Woman Suffrage Association. Because of Brackenridgeโs tireless efforts in the suffrage movement, Texas was the first southern state to give women the right to vote and became the ninth state in the union to ratify the 19th Amendment. If the Brackenridge name sounds familiar โ her brother, also a philanthropist, donated the land that is now known as Brackenridge Park.
19th Amendment anniversary: A timeline of 100 years of voting rights for women
โThe 19th Amendment ensured the vote for women in the United States, Black women and white women. And that is the matter of racism in the womenโs suffrage movement in the United States,โ she said. It wouldnโt be until 1965โฒs federal Voterโs Rights Act, that everyone, including Black women, had the right to vote. โThat comes as a big split, sense of betrayal, I think, on the part of white women. Meanwhile, white women were attempting to pass womenโs suffrage state by state, largely focusing on Southern states.
White ribbons placed along San Antonio River Walk trees in honor of womenโs voting rights
SAN ANTONIO โ If you took a stroll along the San Antonio River Walk on Sunday, you may have noticed some white ribbons wrapped along the trees. Those are placed to honor women gaining the right to vote in 1920. The San Antonio 19th Amendment Centennial Committee is hosting a series of events with support from the city that celebrates these voting rights. More events similar to this one are planned, beginning Tuesday, Aug. 18 to Aug. 26. Tennessee passed the amendment on Aug. 18, but it wasnโt until Aug. 26 that Congress certified the results.
Blood, sweat and tears shed to ensure right to vote after it became legal for all, San Antonio historian says
Before women got the right to vote, the 15th Amendment, which passed in 1869 and was ratified the following year, gave Black men the right to vote. St. Maryโs University history professor Teresa Van Hoy says the move didnโt sit well with some white women. โOne of the first things they said is that Black men should not receive the vote before white women,โ Van Hoy said. AdโThey made many racist remarks about Black men,โ Van Hoy said. โThe 19th Amendment ensured the vote for women in the United States, Black women and white women,โ Van Hoy said.