Happy 190th Birthday Susan B. Anthony
by Staff
February 16, 2010
WASHINGTON, (christiansunite.com) -- America's greatest women's rights leader, Susan B. Anthony, was born 190 years ago today, on February 15th, 1820. The president of the Susan B. Anthony List, a national organization named for the pro-life suffragette, reflected on Anthony's largely unknown pro-life legacy."If Susan B. Anthony was alive today, she would be overjoyed by the strength of the growing American pro- life majority," said Marjorie Dannenfelser, President of the Susan B. Anthony List. "While many are familiar with Anthony's efforts to earn women the right to vote, few realize she vehemently opposed abortion. Anthony recognized that authentic women's rights could never be built upon the broken rights of innocent unborn children."
"Susan B. Anthony's brand of original, authentic pro- life feminism resonates with today's American woman," said Dannenfelser. "And it's why the old guard of abortion-promoting feminists struggles to remain relevant. In our increasingly pro-life culture, the 'pro-choice' label has worn out its usefulness. The modern feminist mantra calling for a taxpayer-funded abortion in every home flies in the face of Susan B. Anthony's legacy of equal rights for all, even the unborn. "
Susan B. Anthony's pro-life stance is evident in her writings. The proprietor and business manager of the early feminist newspaper The Revolution, Anthony published many articles under a simple pseudonym, "A." In an article entitled "Marriage & Maternity," Anthony referred to abortion as "the horrible crime of child-murder," and said that abortion would "burden [a woman's] conscience in life, [and] it will burden her soul in death."
A poll conducted by the polling company(TM), inc./WomanTrend in October 2009 found that two thirds of women objected to government-funded abortions in a healthcare bill, including majorities of women of all ages, races, regions, marital and parental statuses, and political parties. Of these women, 55% selfidentified as Democrats, 66% as Independents, and 84% as Republicans. Even the 39% of women who identified as "pro-choice" opposed abortion funding. This data supports the Gallup poll from May 2009 that found a majority of Americans (51%) labeled themselves as "pro-life." The Gallup poll also found that more women, 49% over 44%, call themselves "pro-life" over "pro-choice."
Earlier this year, National Organization for Women President Terry O'Neill, confessed to the National Journal that the organization is struggling. "It seems to me we are stalled out..." The National Journal article contrasted the grassroots success of the Susan B. Anthony List with the apparent decline of NOW's grassroots effectiveness.
The Susan B. Anthony List is a nationwide network of Americans, over 280,000 residing in all 50 states, dedicated to mobilizing, advancing, and representing pro-life women in politics. Its connected Candidate Fund increases the percentage of pro-life women in the political process.
