Suffrage and Beyond

Book excerpt: The 1980s and 1990s have seen an unprecedented emphasis on global feminism, on the connectedness of women regardless of race, class, or geography. And yet, the status and position of women throughout the world remains enormously disparate. Even so fundamental an issue as a woman's right to vote has been--and in many countries continues to be--hotly contested. How then have suffrage movements evolved? What are the similarities and differences in the manner in which women, in a range of different economic, religious, and political contexts, have sought the vote? Bringing together such eminent scholars as Nancy Cott, Ellen Dubois, and Carole Pateman, Suffrage and Beyond offers a comprehensive look at the political history of suffrage on a global scale.