Walking in Our Grandmother's Footsteps, We Can Vote!
Nov 05, 2020 12:00AM ● By By Margaret Snider
This sculpture made of barrel staves and other items won first place for Emily Goldhahn at the latest MACC exhibit. Photo by Margaret Snider
RANCHO CORDOVA, CA (MPG) - The latest exhibit at the MACC celebrates the 100th anniversary of the 19th amendment to the United States Constitution granting women the right to vote. The exhibit includes banners from the Rochester, New York, public library; posters from the Smithsonian; and 18 works of art by 16 artists.
Marsha Mason of Rancho Cordova was awarded Best in Show for her work “Walking in Our Grandmother’s footsteps.” Using 100 plus year-old leather boot tops from her husband’s family, Mason crafted a pair of boots to commemorate the suffragettes. The boots are filled with colorful fabric roses, in recognition of Inez Milholland, a lawyer and activist born in 1886. “When Inez Milholland did her 12,000 mile campaign to get ratification,” Mason said, “everywhere she went her fans would bring her a bouquet of flowers.”
Emily Goldhahn, who lives in West Sacramento, received first prize for her sculpture titled, “Jeanette…and she painted the town red!” The title refers to Jeanette Rankin. “She was the first woman elected to U.S. Federal office, in 1916,” Goldhahn said. “She voted no on World War I and yes on suffrage, of course. She was reelected to the House of Representatives and voted no on World War II, so she was the only member of Congress, I guess, to vote no on both World Wars.”
Monica Lee took second place with “We Can Vote!” and in third place is Trish Morris-Plise with “Same S*** Different Year.” Other artists with work in the Century of Suffrage exhibit are: Ella Fodor, Cheryl Gleason, Ron Hall, Deborah Kelly, Brynn Kelly, Mars Kindsvater, Melissa Lee, Ginny Lee, David Peterson, Lynn Tubbe, Ondra Ward, and Alice Washington.
The Century of Suffrage exhibit will be open at the MACC Thursday through Saturday for three weekends, November 5-7, Nov. 12-14, and Nov. 19-21. Hours are 3-8 p.m. Thursdays and Fridays, and 11 a.m.-4 p.m. on Saturdays. There will be two online Zoom lectures as well. Mona Siegel held hers from 6-7:30 p.m., on Wednesday, Nov. 4, and Amanda DeWilde will speak 6-7:30 p.m., Tuesday, Nov. 10.
The first place in the world to allow women the right to vote was Wyoming in 1869, while it was still a territory. Cheryl Gleason, the MACC event coordinator and curator, points out that men outnumbered women 6 to 1 in Wyoming at that time, and the population of the territory was decreasing, partly due to waning yield of gold from the mines. So while many men may have wanted the vote for women because it was the right thing to do, there were also a number that wanted to attract more women to the area.
In California, Proposition 4 of 1911 amended the state’s Constitution to grant women the right to vote; however, not all women were included. There was a literacy requirement that barred some women from voting and Native American women were excepted as well.
Other states passed laws at various times concerning women’s suffrage, ending in 1920 when the 19th amendment to the United States Constitution was ratified and became the law of the land. It read, “The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex.”
The MACC is located at 10191 Mills Station Rd., Rancho Cordova. For more information about this exhibit or the MACC, please call Cheryl Gleason, 916-273-5712 or e-mail [email protected]. Masks are required inside the MACC, hand sanitizer is available, and temperature checks will be done at the door. The gallery exhibit is arranged for social distancing.
