妇女的选举权 Women’s Right to Vote（2/2）

I stand before you tonight under dit for the alleged cri ofhavg voted at the st presidential ele, without havg a wful right to vote.It shall be y work this eveng to prove to you thatthis votg, I not only itted no cri, but, stead, siply exercised y citizen’s rights, guaraoand all Uates citizens by the National stitution, beyond the power of any state to deny.

The preable of the Federal stitution says,

“We, the people of the Uates,order to for a ore perfeioablish jtice, sure dostic tranquillity, provide for the on defense, proote the general welfare, and secure the blessgs of liberty to ourselves and our posterity, do orda aablish this stitution for the Uates of Arica.”

It was we, the people; not we, the white ale citizens; nor yet we, the ale citizens; but we, the whole people, who ford the Union.And we ford it, not to give the blessgs of liberty, but to secure the; not to the half of ourselves and the half of our posterity, but to the whole people—won as well as n.And it is a dht ockery to talk to won of their enjoynt of the blessgs of liberty while they are dehe e of the only ans of securg the provided by this deocratic-republi governnt—the ballot.

…

For any state to ake sex a qualification that t ever resultthe disfranchisent of oire half of the people is to pass a bill of attader, or an ex post facto w, and is therefore a viotion of the supre w of the nd.By it the blessgs of liberty are forever withheld fro won and their feale posterity.To the this governnt has no jt powers derived fro theof the govero the this governnt is not a deocracy.It is not a republic.It is an odio aristocracy; a hateful oligarchy of sex; the ost hateful aristocracy ever established on the face of the globe; an oligaran, ight be endured; but this oligarchy of sex, which akes father, brothers, hband, sons, the oligarchs over the other and sisters, the wife and daughters, of every hoehold—which ordas all n sns, all won subjects, carries dissension, disrd, and rebellion to every ho of the nation.

Webster, Worcester and Bouvier all defe a citizen to be a personthe Uates, entitled to vote and hold office.

The only questioo be settled now is: Are won persons? And I hardly believe any of our oppos will have the hardihood to say they are not.Beg persons, then, woizens; and no state has a right to ake any w, or to enfory old w, that shall abridge their privileges or iunities.Hence, every discriation agast wonthe nstitutions and ws of the several states is today null and void, precisely as is every one agast Negroes.