The Woman's Hour

This is a remarkable book about a remarkable chapter in the fight for women’s right to vote. The story of the suffrage fight throughout the Summer of 1920 in Tennessee is so incredible that it seems impossible.

And what is even more bonkers is how remarkably similar some of the issues and players are to those of today. We could have done an entire show based on what we learned in The Woman’s Hour!

This recent book tells the dramatic story of Tennessee’s ratification of the 19th Amendment. Thirty-six states were required for ratification, and by July 1920 it all came down to Tennessee. The fate of women’s suffrage, decades of struggle, hung in the balance. I love how Weiss brings the context, characters, and events in the drama to life. She vividly portrays the public proceedings and plotting behind-the-scenes for a victory that almost didn’t happen and can’t be taken for granted. Yet, in terms of race, it was a hollow victory. Weiss shows how the suffrage debate in Tennessee, a former slave… show more.

One indicator of a great book is when, even though you know how the story ends, you still can’t put it down. In The Woman’s Hour Weiss takes us through the final days and weeks that led up to Tennessee becoming the 36th (and final) state to ratify the 19th Amendment. It’s a page-turner. 

Weiss takes us behind the scenes to show how endemic misogyny and racism combined to (almost!) tank ratification in Tennessee. Among other strategies, suffrage opponents dispensed alcohol freely to legislators (all men) to buy their votes. The whole suffrage movement came down to this… show more.