The Story of the Woman's PartyGillmore, Inez Haynes
History
The Story of the Woman's Party
Gillmore, Inez Haynes
National Woman's Party; Paul, Alice, 1885-1977; Women -- Suffrage -- United States
What they accomplished! Once Alice Paul turned Anita Pollitzer loose on
the entire State of Wyoming and Anita Pollitzer brought Wyoming into
camp. It is impossible to do justice to all of them, to any of them. But
as an example of how they worked, I am quoting from letters written by
Anita Pollitzer describing various experiences in her work of
organization. I use Miss Pollitzer’s letters, not because they are
exceptional but because they are typical. Space will not permit me to do
equal justice to any of the others. But perhaps some day all those
marvelous narratives will be collected. Miss Pollitzer writes me as
follows:
Wyoming
“Campaign against the party in power”—late October, 1918—snow on the
ground and no friends in the State—traveled miles to get help of most
influential woman, found her lying on the floor of a church with brass
tacks and a hammer—She said she was “chairman of the committee on laying
carpets in the church,” and that was all she could undertake.
Cheyenne wonderfully beautiful—plains—most exceptional place for
campaign purposes—forty minutes between street cars—snow miles high and
every woman demanding a separate visit. Influenza epidemic so bad that
it was considered immoral for six women to meet in a parlor—only way was
to campaign by dodgers and street signs—Got permission from owner of
building to put a forty-foot purple, white, and gold sign, suspended it
from the most prominent building—Town literally gathered in groups to
see it—I got up next morning at seven and sign was down—I had
“antagonized”—so I went to call on the Mayor and we toured the town, and
rehung the sign on an even more important street, and I had double
publicity, the Mayor taking full responsibility for the sign even
inquiring if it would “run in the rain.”
Such fearful snow, could get no billboard men to put up my big paper
signs outside of the cities, and I wanted them on cross-country roads. I
met a woman delivering newspapers, explained our campaign and my
difficulties, and she offered us her eighteen-year-old daughter and a
box of stickers, and we tramped the automobile roads and papered the
tree trunks—Posters.
This is my first National Woman’s Party trip. Wyoming a real
adventure—South where I have always lived (Charleston, South Carolina)
so utterly unlike—When I went out to mail my thousands of circular
letters each night at two A.M. funny Filipino bell boys and other kinds
would escort me and carry the thousands of circular letters to mail box.
Local post-office _really_ asked me to be “more considerate.”
South Carolina
Getting Senator Pollock’s vote seemed largely a question of getting the
farmers of South Carolina. If Pollock (the Progressive) was to beat
Senator Smith (the Reactionary) he must please the farm element.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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