On February 6, in 1918, the United Kingdom Parliament passed a law which allowed some women to vote for the first time. Called the 1918 Representation of the People Act, the electoral reform allowed women over the age of 30 with certain minimum property qualifications to cast their vote.
The fight for women’s suffrage was led by bold, fierce women like Emmeline Pankhurst, who gave her life for the cause. A century later, the world celebrates 100 years of women’s suffrage with #Vote100, a movement to get the government to pardon the suffragettes who were treated as criminals during their struggle
Naturally, things have changed markedly since then, and the British TV network Channel 4 has made a bold commemorative video (above). It reminds us of everything women were told they couldn’t do, from playing football, managing a bank, reading the news, or going into space to marrying another woman or being a rapper. Highlighting all the “no” and “can’t”s, the video is a fierce celebration of the determination and strength of women in overcoming all obstacles to attain their freedom and rights.
However, it’s not over yet. “A lot’s changed in the 100 years since women got the vote. But we’re not there yet. Hundred years and counting,” says the narrator.
The channel has made another video (below) to celebrate 100 years of voting rights for women by asking three 100-year-old women to tell us what has changed for women over their lifetimes. One woman poignantly reminds the audience why voting is so important, saying, “All women should go out and vote because women died like the suffragettes for vote”.
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