Essay Example about Kate Sheppard and Women's Rights Movement

Today, 198 countries and territories allow women the right to vote (Schaeffer). Kate Sheppard, born March 10, 1847, held a critical role in the women’s suffrage movement. Because of Sheppard, New Zealand was the first self-governing country to give women the right to vote, which would then inspire other countries to do the same as well (Britannica).

Many of us find ourselves asking the question: why weren’t women allowed to vote in the first place? There were a plethora of misogynistic reasons why men and even women of those times would have argued why women shouldn’t have voted, but most of them were simply along the lines of the belief that men were better than women. These people would argue that without the help of men, women could not form their own ideas or thoughts. Another popular argument was that after taking care of the children and doing the chores that their house and husband required, women did not have the time nor the ability to be able to keep up with politics. Their opinions were practically seen as useless. Associations were created in opposition to the growing number of suffragists. One of the largest and most well-known ones in the United States was the National Association Opposed to Women’s Suffrage also known as the NAOWS. It wasn’t just political groups like these that shamed women who wanted their rights, but also religious leaders, artists, and publicists (Lange).

While Kate Sheppard was a prominent figure in New Zealand’s suffrage movement, she was not actually born there. She moved to New Zealand in 1869 from Scotland where she was

mostly raised (Britannica). She was well educated in the sciences, arts, and law; her religious education was extensive as well (Malcom). After moving to Christchurch, New Zealand, she became a co-founder of the New Zealand Women’s Christian Temperance Union (Biography.com). According to Britannica, the Temperance Movement was in favor of limiting alcohol consumption. However, these women concluded that without the right to vote, they could not have any effect on this movement (Malcom). Sheppard spent most of her time advocating for not only women’s suffrage but also against other sexist aspects of society. She encouraged women to do things that weren’t considered “ladylike” such as participating in physical activity or fighting against the use of corsets (Britannica). She did not limit her ideologies to just her town, she traveled around the country and wrote to newspapers to promote women’s suffrage (Brewerton). Despite her tireless efforts, her petitions were rejected many times by Parliament. In 1892, she had roughly 20,000 signatures on her petition, but Parliament still refused. A year later she came back with 30,000 signatures, and on September 19, 1893, her bill was signed. New Zealand then became the first country to ever allow women to vote (Biography.com).

Her activism did not stop there, however. She was a co-founder of the National Council of Women, of which she was elected the president. This organization fought for marriage equality and for women to be able to run for Parliament (Biography.com). She also became the editor of the first newspaper in New Zealand to be managed solely by women called The White Ribbon (Malcom). In 1903, she stepped down as president of the NCW due to poor health. As her health improved, she was still a prominent figure in women’s suffrage movements all across the globe, specifically the United States and England (Britannica). In fact, she was elected honorary vice-president of the International Council of Women. July 13, 1934, Kate died, but not before seeing Elizabeth McCombs become the first woman to enter New Zealand’s Parliament (Brewerton). According to Britannica, New Zealand honored Sheppard by making her the face of their $10 note.

Kate Sheppard was a pivotal figure in the women’s rights movement, and her accomplishments and contributions ultimately led to women all around the world being able to participate in government. Women’s rights remain an issue in America and many other countries today. However, it is women and men like Kate Sheppard that lead us all closer to equality in society and government.