She Votes!
100 years ago, the 19th Amendment was ratified. But American women’s battle for the ballot began long before that day in August—and continues, even to this day. Wonder Media Network presents She Votes!—a podcast that digs into the complex history of the women’s suffrage movement and its enduring significance, hosted by award-winning journalists Ellen Goodman and Lynn Sherr. Having lived through—and covered—feminism’s second-wave, Goodman and Sherr tell the definitive story of suffrage, from the first demands to speak on public matters by antislavery activists in 1837, through the 1848 Seneca Falls Convention for women's rights, to the drama of the final passage in 1920 and beyond.
Our Editor's Take
She Votes! is a journalistic storytelling podcast about the US women's suffrage movement. Iconic American reporters Lynn Sherr and Ellen Goodman host the podcast. Sherr is a broadcast journalist and author. Goodman is a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist. Together, they guide listeners through the fight for women's voting rights in the US. The program weaves traditional reporting with animated conversation and dramatization.
The podcast begins with the story of Susan B. Anthony. The Rochester, New York, native was a pioneer of the women's suffrage movement. Goodman and Sherr describe how Susan managed to cast a vote before women had the right to do so. The cohosts describe her subsequent arrest and trial. Susan's 1873 criminal conviction still stands today. Former President Donald Trump offered her a pardon in 2020. But the National Susan B. Anthony Museum and House chose to decline the offer.
She Votes! includes dramatized scenes in which actors play key characters from each episode. Award-winning actor Christine Baranski plays Susan B. Anthony. She is well known for her portrayal of Diane Lockhart in the TV series The Good Wife and The Good Fight. Baranski reads extracts of Susan's speeches and letters to her friend Elizabeth Cady Stanton. This creates a nuanced listening experience that many might find absorbing.
In other episodes of She Votes!, Goodman and Sherr reveal some of the reasons why women were denied the vote for so long. Many of them relate to sexist ideas about women's reproductive capabilities. The two cohosts punctuate the narrative with fascinating insights from their own experiences. When they began their careers in journalism, women usually only conducted research. The pair explains how almost every writer was male.
She Votes! may be of interest to listeners who want to learn about women's history. American history enthusiasts and fans of the hosts might also enjoy the podcast.
Episodes