A sellout crowd turned out at New York’s Metropolitan Opera House on Friday, 2 May 1913. They were not in attendance to hear the Great Caruso. Instead Theodore Roosevelt was the featured presentation, there to give his support for women’s suffrage. Roosevelt was late to the woman’s suffrage movement but when he converted he did so with his usual vigor and energy. He spoke for an hour and was not just preaching to the choir; he emphasized that men were his primary audience. Always aware of the historical moment, Roosevelt made certain to reference that 1913 was the 65th anniversary of the Seneca Falls Convention. Ten suffragist organizations sponsored the speaking engagement and the 10,000 person march down Fifth Avenue that took place the following day. Roosevelt did not live to see it but American women achieved the right to vote seven years later with the passage of the Nineteenth Amendment. (KM) (Images: The opera house and the parade of Saturday, 3 May 1913.)
Posted on: Fri, 02 May 2014 14:44:36 +0000
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