HR0397 101ST GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HR0397 LRB101 12443 ALS 60576 r

HOUSE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, Illinois had long been at the forefront of the movement to provide women the right to vote; and

WHEREAS, In Illinois, the women's suffrage association was established in Earlville in LaSalle County in 1855, just seven years after the first women's rights convention in Seneca Falls New York, which called for suffrage for women; and

WHEREAS, The Illinois Woman Suffrage Association, the first statewide suffrage organization, was established in 1869; the organization became the Illinois Equal Suffrage Association in 1981; and

WHEREAS, In 1891, Illinois enacted a law allowing women the right to vote for elective school offices; and

WHEREAS, In 1913, Illinois enacted the Presidential Suffrage Bill, which gave Illinois women the right to vote in federal and municipal elections, which were not otherwise restricted to men only by the Illinois Constitution; and

WHEREAS, With the enactment of that law, Illinois became the first state east of the Mississippi River to give women such right to vote for President of the United States and is credited with being a major positive influence in advancing the women's suffrage movement in the United States; and

WHEREAS, On June 4, 1919, the proposed 19th Amendment to the United States Constitution was passed by the United States Congress and sent to the States for ratification; and

WHEREAS, 100 years ago on June 10, 1919, Illinois became the first State to ratify the 19th Amendment, one hour prior to Wisconsin; and

WHEREAS, Illinois led the way for the necessary three-fourths of the States to ratify the 19th Amendment, which became part of the Constitution on August 26, 1920; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE HUNDRED FIRST GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we declare June 10, 2019 as a day to celebrate women's right to vote and the important role Illinois played in achieving that right in the United States.