Founding Mothers and the Stamp Act
Dr. Rosemarie Zigarri was a history professor at George
Mason University, as well as the Thomas Jefferson chair of American
Studies at the University of Amsterdam in 1993. In her lecture that was
posted on Canvas, she speaks about the women and slaves that contributed
to founding era. Her argument discusses how the women of history
struggled to get credit for the many contributions they put towards the
colonies that affected them beneficially. Zigarri speaks about how
through the 18th and 19th century, women were
politically invisible. Women were unable to vote or have any say in
political matters and could not run for public office. If women were
widowed or single and owned land, they could vote but even that, many
men did not like whatsoever.
Once the revolutionary war took place, many husbands were enlisted to
serve and left their wives at home to take care of the businesses that
the men had to leave behind. This was very scary for most wives
considering they were most likely never taught the proper way to care
for a business. This is because women were strictly to care for the home
and children. Zigarri explains that without the participation of the
women, male revolutionaries couldn’t have been successful in their fight
against Britain. The evidence she provided for her argument were three
specific historic women; Ester Reed, Phylis Wheatley, and Elizabeth
Stevens. Each of these ladies struggled to be heard yet contributed to
the history of the nation. The revolution enlisted women’s support, made
them politically conscious, and encouraged men to think of women as
political agents. Because of this, educational opportunities expanded
for women as institutions opened offering to educate women.
The purpose of Zaggari’s lecture was to inform the
listeners of the struggles and obstacles that women, specifically Reed,
Wheatley, and Stevens, faced in the 18th and 19th
century when it came to political and social issues. She wants to
enlighten people on the beneficial contributions the women gave to our
country and prove that not only men were the founders of liberty. She
wants to credit the women and prove they were capable of making positive
impacts on the colonies. Back in the days of Reed, Wheatley, Stevens,
and other women from the 18th century, men did not want to
credit women pretty much anything besides house work and raising the
children because men felt that women were not smart enough to pretty
much do any manly thing. Zaggaris purpose was to acknowledge and credit
the women and enlighten the viewers of the issue the women faced.
In class we discussed the lecture and our understanding
on the topic. Many of us asked questions on what we needed clarified and
Ms. Arrowsmith kindly explained the answer to us. I believe as a class
that has both men and women, having a group discussion on the topic was
extremely important. Both the men and women in the class had their own
thoughts, opinions, and questions. Hearing certain questions or comments
raised other questions or comments. Trying to connect the issues of
that time to our modern lives we live shows how much has drastically
changed since then. And I think a lot of us can say we are grateful for
having the opportunities we have now. It shows us how important equality
really is to us Americans.
Some of the questions discussed in class included; How
were women affected by the Revolutionary War? The conclusion we drew was
that the women faced many hardships. They were unable to vote or have
any political say in the colonies. Yet, they were left alone to take
over businesses and farms while their husbands were at war. This was an
issue because women were not properly educated to handle certain
businesses and companies. This led to many businesses going out of
business, and in result to that, many families became poor. Mothers
struggled to make enough money to feed their babies. Another question
was; How did women contribute during the Revolutionary War. The
conclusion we drew was that the women, specifically Reed, wanted to do
more direct gestures for the continental army. She organized a group of
women to help her fundraise money for the army in 1780. They went door
to door asking people to contribute to the cause. They collected over
$7,000. When they tried to give the gold coins to the army Washington
would not allow it in fear of the men using the money for alcohol to get
drunk rather for things they really needed. Instead, the ladies spun
their own cloth and made shirts and socks for the members of the
continental army with their names on them as a personal gesture.
Some questions that still remain after watching the lecture and
having our in-class discussions are; Were there cases of men who tried
to stand up for women’s rights in the 18th and 19th
century? If so, how did other men who didn’t support women’s rights
react to the men who did support women? Were women ever sentenced to
death or imprisonment if trying to stand up for what they believed in?
If so, what kind of punishments did they face? I found this topic to be
very interesting and I would love to learn more!
