Over the past seven generations, women have struggled to gain equal rights as men. They have protested, petitioned, lobbied, spoke in public, and have peacefully protested to get what they feel they deserve and they still do this now. Since the first protest in 1848 to the last one on January 21, 2017,  the type of activists and their beliefs have changed dramatically. Like Martin Luther King once said,”Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter.”

The Women’s Rights Movement marked the beginning of the 1800 activists era. In these years, second-class, white women protested many different problems, like voting rights. Voting Rights had been a major problem back in the 1800s because most of the United States believed that women should have no rights because they did not do the things that men did. They also protested for fair treatment in the workplace because women who worked in a factories were treated poorly and paid very little, while men were paid more and had better working conditions . These two issues lasted for 47 years, but the next year the women did not want to put up with the injustice anymore, so they protested the streets with signs, shirts, and more. This not only marked the beginning of women’s rights protests, but protests all over the world. “ Never doubt a group that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has,” said former anthropologist Margaret Mead.

The 1900s did not change much for women but they did get the right to vote in 1920. In this year the government ratified the 19th amendment so that women had the right to vote, but this did not apply to all women. Although white women were granted a right to vote, African American women were not. Because of this, the protesting continued. Along with the right for black women to vote, they protested many rights for industrial workers. A major protest was for the right for workers to form unions, federal minimum wage, and healthcare.

From the mid 1900s to 2000s many things changed, including rights and gender roles. Women now have much more prerogative then women did back in the 1800s. Since the recent election of Donald Trump, many women have felt that he does not treat women right and does not treat everyone fairly, which drew an even larger crowd of men and women. When senior Brittany Borders was asked if the Women’s March was impactful she said,” Yeah, I think it was cool to see everyone stand up for what they believe in, in a time that they are in fear of losing important rights they’ve had and should always have. But, I think that some got too carried away with it. The destruction of random stores and other people’s property should not have occurred. This made people question their real intentions.” So women and men all over the United States gathered and assembled the Women’s March in various parts of the world. Women and men around the world also came together to support the American women and men. Many gathered worldwide marching for various reasons thanks to technology. Since technology has advanced over the years, it has made the topic of equal rights known to people all over the world. It has also made march videos go viral on the internet making the whole event more impactful.

The fight for women’s rights has been a long process and continues to this day. Along the way, many rights have been gained and the fight for other rights have come along for the ride. Overall, the type of rights fought for and the people that were fighting for them have changed immensely and have impacted the future of people all over.