Votes for Women Reading Passage
Votes for Women Reading Passage
Paragraph A: The Pankhurst family and various degrees of violence are most commonly associated with the suffragette movement, which fought for women's suffrage in the early twentieth century. The Museum of London has used its extensive archive to present a new perspective. A History of the Suffrage Movement in London, 1906–1914 in Purple, White, and Green.
Paragraph B: The name alludes to the official colour scheme adopted by the Women's Social and Political Union (WSPU) to promote a uniform, worldwide image for the movement. The exhibition highlights the WSPU's groundbreaking corporate identity campaign, as well as the university's other organisational and commercial successes.
Paragraph C: Mrs. Emmeline Pankhurst, along with her daughters Christabel and Sylvia, formed the WSPU in 1903 and began a well-informed campaign to advance women's suffrage. While women in New Zealand, Australia, and some states in the United States were already able to vote, a growing number of Britons wanted the same right.
Paragraph D: When the WSPU adopted the colour scheme and adopted the slogan "Deeds not words," the movement quickly gained the unity and focus it had been lacking.
Paragraph E: Rapid growth in membership occurred as women stopped attending meetings of competing, less focused organisations. In 1906, the Women's Social and Political Union (WSPU) established its headquarters in Charing Cross Road under the name Women's Press Shop. Despite the lack of radio, television, and widespread telephone use at the time, the WSPU's message had spread across the country, with members and branch officers located as far north as Scotland.
Paragraph F: Communication was crucial to the success of the WSPU, and the newspapers it published, first Votes for Women and then The Suffragette, were instrumental in that effort. Both were widely distributed across the country and proved to be essential in keeping people abreast of the latest developments in the movement and the locations of important meetings, marches, and fund-raisers.
Paragraph G: Just as crucial for a burgeoning political movement was the newspaper's financial success. Large retailers like Selfridges and jewellery stores like Mappin & Webb were regular buyers of newspaper advertising space. These two, along with other like-minded businesses sympathetic to the cause, had quickly identified a direct way to reach a massive market of women, many of whom have disposable income.
Paragraph H: When the WSPU realised it could make money off of the scheme's conception, they jumped on it. The organisation quickly expanded into selling a wide variety of purple, white, and green merchandise, including playing cards, board games, Christmas and greeting cards, and more. The concept of a company's name and logo being sold as merchandise was novel in the business world back in 1906.
Paragraph I: In addition to the paper and merchandise sales, the WSPU engaged in a slew of other fund-raising activities to bolster its "war chest" and cover operational expenses. The Woman's Exhibition, held in a Knightsbridge ice skating rink in 1909, was the most successful of these, raising the equivalent of £250,000 in 10 days.
Paragraph J: Exhibits at London's Museum are primarily visual, with a vast collection on display. Copies of The Suffragette, campaign banners, and photographs line the walls, along with Mrs. shoes and various purple, white, and green mementoes, against the soft hum of street sounds.
Paragraph K: Photos capture the everyday struggles of a suffragette, from selling The Suffragette on street corners to chalking up pavements with details of an upcoming meeting to WSPU members on a self-proclaimed monster' march in official uniforms of a white frock decorated with purple, white, and green accessories.
Paragraph L: The high quality of the postcards and greeting cards displayed in the windows demonstrates the depth of talent within the WSPU's ranks.
Paragraph M: The political climate surrounding the suffragettes of the time period is laid bare for visitors in a short film assembled from vintage newsreels and cinematic footage. The show opens with a clip created by the "antis" (people who are against women having the right to vote) that portrays a suffragette as a ruthless harridan who bullies her poor, abused husband.
Paragraph N: During a famous race, suffragette Emily Wilding Davison is seen in original newsreel footage throwing herself under King George V's horse.
Paragraph O: Graphic display boards outlining the bills of the enfranchisement of 1918 and 1928 that gave the adult female populace of Britain the vote show what was accomplished, even though the exhibition itself only covers the years 1906 to 1914. It shows how far ahead of their time the suffragettes were in terms of strategy, campaign marketing, and image construction. It shows how the suffragettes fought for equality and freedom with vigour and strength. As such, it serves as an example of the savviness displayed by women, who were once thought to have "brains too small to know how to vote", according to the opinions of several politicians.
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