Declaration of Sentiments

For much of history, the society of men and women was marked by a single unquestioned fact, that men controlled events and women merely obeyed. This practice, and men’s accompanying attitude of superiority over their female counterparts, was deeply ingrained, its premise reinforced—often in anger—by the taller, stronger, and more aggressive men, while male leaders, including religious authorities, explained at length why it was the duty of women to accept this and serve their men.

Though these arguments were hypocritical—men enforced the rules, often through brute strength, and then explained after the fact why their suzerainty was justified—women usually had little choice but to acquiesce. Over countless generations, these attitudes sank deeply into the minds of both men and women.

This began to change during the 1800s in America and elsewhere. Though preachers had long argued that women were little more than men’s “helpmeets”—helpmates, but in fact servants—the opening of political liberty in the United States also awakened women’s hearts and minds to the possibility that they, too, had the right to freedom as human beings. As the labor-saving devices of the burgeoning industrial revolution freed up some of their time and energy, women also wondered why they couldn’t attend college or strive to acquire professional credentials.