When thinking of the women who pioneered women’s suffrage, images of women like Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony come to mind. While these women were instrumental in petitioning for women’s right to vote, other women of equal importance are often left out of the conversation and historical representation of this important time in American history. 

When the 19th Amendment was ratified, giving women the right to vote, there were still a number of barriers for women of color. Among many others, the women below fought for the rights of both women and people of color to have equal rights and make their voices heard. 

Ida B. Wells-Barnett

Ida B. Wells-Barnett was a pioneer of women’s suffrage and equal rights, with a long line of firsts in the history of both movements. She was the founder of the Alpha Suffrage Club (ASC), the first Black suffrage club in Chicago. Wells also launched the first anti-lynching campaign. She dedicated a significant portion of her life to working on campaigns for people who could bring the change women of color needed, even while nursing her infant. According to the Women’s Suffrage Centennial Commission, “African Americans, women’s suffrage also meant Black suffrage, and few were more passionate than Wells-Barnett about the role women could play at a time of mob-rule, rape with impunity, and Supreme Court-sanctioned segregation.” Ida B. Wells-Barnett helped found the National Association of Colored Women (NACW), the largest coalition of Black reformers and suffragists. Wells-Barnett paved the way for other women to make their voices heard and eventually get the right to vote.

Mary McLeod Bethune

Mary McLeod Bethune was an educator, club woman, and stateswoman. She did not believe a true democracy could exist unless all genders and races had a voice. Inspired by other suffragists and civil rights activists like Ida B. Wells-Barnett, she encouraged women to vote as soon as the 19th Amendment passed, even though there were helfty poll taxes that sought to suppress voting for people of color. After the passage of the 19th Amendment, the KKK sought to terrorize Bethune and keep her from speaking out. Instead, she met them head-on “with arms folded and head held high.” She led a group to go vote, where they waited an entire day to cast their ballots. She remarked, “But we voted.”

Sojourner Truth

Sojourner Truth was an African American evangelist, abolitionist, women’s rights activist, and author. Though her most famous speech was her moving, “Ain’t I a Woman?” speech in 1851, she championed women’s rights and human rights as a whole throughout her life. Sojourner Truth reminded women of their strength and challenged the idea that women should not vote. She believed that women’s suffrage and the abolishment of slavery should occur simultaneously.

Harriet Tubman 

The Harriet Tubman Historical Society states that she “believed in equality of all people, black or white, male or female, which made her sympathetic to the women’s rights movement.” Though she is most known for her work with the Underground Railroad, a secret network guiding escaped slaves to freedom, she also championed women’s rights. In fact, Harriet Tubman toured New York, Boston, and Washington, D.C. to advocate for women’s suffrage. She was a guest speaker at the very first meeting for the National Association of Colored Women, the largest federation of Black women’s clubs, where suffrage was a primary goal.

This list is only a few of the amazing women of color who paved the way for future generations of women to get out and vote, regardless of race. To explore more heroes of women’s suffrage and abolition of slavery, check out these resources from the National Women’s History Museum.