The woman's rights movement is now more strongly organized and has penetrated the society. There are many causes for this: women's greater freedom of activity; more vigorous training in self-reliance and responsibility; more significant superiority in numbers of women in Germanic countries, which has forced women to adopt business or professional callings other than domestic. However, North America is the cradle of the woman's rights movement. It was the War of Independence of the colonies against England (1774-1783) that matured the woman's rights movement. In the name of "freedom," this cause entered the history of the world. In these troubled times, the American women had, by energetic activities and unyielding suffering, entirely fulfilled their duty as citizens, and at the Convention in Philadelphia, in 1787, they demanded as citizens the right to vote. The Constitution of the United States was being drawn up at that time, and by 1789 had been ratified by the thirteen states then existing. In nine of these states, the right to vote in municipal and state affairs had hitherto been exercised by all "free-born citizens" or all "taxpayers" and "heads of families," the state constitutions being based on the principle: no taxation without representation.
Among these "free-born citizens," "taxpayers," and "heads of families," there were naturally many women who were consequently both voters and active citizens. So woman's right to vote in the above-named states was practically established before 1783. Only the states of Virginia and New York had restricted the suffrage to males in 1699 and 1777, Massachusetts and New Hampshire following their example in 1780 and 1784.
In view of this retrograde movement, American women attempted at the Convention in Philadelphia to secure a recognition of their civil rights through the Constitution of the whole federation of states. But the Convention refused this request; just as before, it left the conditions of suffrage to be determined by the individual states. To be sure, in the draft of the Constitution the Convention in no way opposed woman's suffrage. But the nine states which formerly, as colonies, had practically given women the right to vote, had in the meantime abrogated1 this right through the insertion of the word "man" in their election laws, and the first attempt of the American women to secure an expressed constitutional recognition of their rights as citizens failed.
These proceedings gave to the woman's rights movement of the United States a political character from the very beginning. Since then, the American women have labored untiringly for their political emancipation. The anti-slavery movement gave them an excellent opportunity to participate in public affairs.
Since the women had had experience of oppression and slavery, and since they, like negroes, were struggling for the recognition of their "human rights," they were amongst the most zealous opponents of "slavery," and belonged to the most enthusiastic defenders of "freedom" and "justice."
Among the Quakers, who played a very prominent part in the anti-slavery movement, man and woman had the same rights in all respects in the home and church. When the first anti-slavery society was formed in Boston in 1832, twelve women immediately became members. . . .
The principle of the equality of the sexes, which the Quakers held, was opposed by the majority of the population, who held to the Puritanic principle of woman's subordination to man. In consequence of this principle, it was at that time considered "monstrous" that a woman should speak from a public platform.
Even the educated classes shared the prejudice against woman. To them she was a "human being of the second order."

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Read the following sentence from the passage.

To be sure, in the draft of the Constitution the Convention in no way opposed woman's suffrage.

Click on the correct definition of suffrage based on the context.

Select the correct location on the image.
Read the following sentence from the passage.

To be sure, in the draft of the Constitution the Convention in no way opposed woman's suffrage.

Click on the correct definition of suffrage based on the context.
suf. frage noun
1.)petition
2.)assistance
3.)a vote
4.)a ballot