Basic Information
Doris Stevens was born in Omaha, Nebraska on October 26, 1888. She was a suffragist and women’s rights activist. She was a part of several suffrage organizations including the National Women’s Party. With her book, Jailed for Freedom, she shed light on the fight of suffragists and the injustice they experienced, including prison brutality. She challenged gender roles and social customs, especially regarding sexual relationships and marriage. After the First Wave, Stevens went on to fight for women’s rights on an international level (Rupp, 2000).
Background Information
Stevens grew up in a middle-class household with her parents and three siblings. Her mother, Carrie Koopman Stevens, was an immigrant from the provinces of Holland in the Netherlands who moved to the United States when she was a child. Her father, Henry Stevens, had grown up within state institutions and was an unstable provider. Strong-willed and intelligent, Stevens’ mother was seemingly unfulfilled with married life. With her mother very invested in the 1896 election, Stevens and her siblings taped up pictures and wore pins to support President McKinley (Trigg, 2014, pp. 29-31). With the state of her parents’ relationship and early introduction to politics, Stevens had an early awareness of social issues.
She attended Oberlin College in Ohio because it was the first to allow women (besides girls-only colleges) and African Americans. There she took a variety of classes and was immediately caught up in women’s activism. She joined the College Equal Suffrage League and fought for both men and women to be treated equally legally as well as socially (Trigg, 2014, p. 32).
Contributions to the First Wave
Doris Stevens began her journey as an organizer for the National American Woman Suffrage Association (NAWSA). She joined with activists like Alice Paul to create the Congressional Union for Women’s Suffrage (CUWS). This organization, more militant than the NAWSA, eventually broke away to merge into the National Woman’s Party (NWP) (“Historical Overview of the National Womans Party,” n.d.) In the NWP, Stevens was a part of the Silent Sentinels, who picketed every day in front of the White House demanding suffrage. She, as well as other protestors, was arrested on the charge of obstructing traffic. Originally given a 60-day sentence, she only served three before being pardoned. After this, she continued to protest and lobby for the vote.
From these experiences, Doris Stevens wrote her book Jailed for Freedom which she published in 1920, in celebration of the 19th Amendment. In this book she tells the story of the National Women’s Party and gives a voice to its members. She brought insightful accounts of the progression of the movement and helped share the experiences of herself and other women who faced hardship, including the violence experienced by protestors and prisoners. She splits the book up into three sections: Leadership, Political Action, and Militancy. In reading the book, Stevens expressed it was her “… sincere hope that you will understand and appreciate the martyrdom involved, for it was the conscious voluntary gift of beautiful, strong and young hearts” (Stevens, 1920, pp. vii-viii).
In her college years and beyond, Stevens was known for exploring her sexuality (mainly in heterosexual relationships) and believed that freedom of sexuality would lead to even more equality between men and women. “Like other modern feminists, Stevens believed heterosexual fulfillment would join with independence and a meaningful profession as new ideals for women” (Trigg, 2014, p. 75). She was a part of the sexual revolution between the 1910s-1920s, which challenged the idea that only men had sexual needs and enjoyment. By being in charge of her own sexuality, regardless of marriage, Stevens had autonomy over her own body. She had several love affairs and was married twice (Rupp, 2000).
An experience that really shaped her own sexuality was when her first husband, Dudley Malone, “criticized Steven’s talents and responsiveness as a lover and turned to other women, she retaliated by having a one-night stand with an Italian calvary officer” (Trigg, 2014, p. 79). Through her experience with the calvary officer, Stevens gained great confidence in her own sexual ability, although her first marriage eventually weakened after these events and Stevens got divorced. Despite this, Stevens newfound sexuality defined her future relationships and was very influential in how she viewed intimate relationships moving forward.
“The Administration pinned its faith on jail — that institution of convenience to the oppressor when he is strong in power and his weapons are effective. When the oppressor miscalculates the strength of the oppressed, jail loses its convenience.”
~Doris Stevens (Stevens, 1920, p. 98)
Analysis and Conclusion
Doris Stevens was very important in helping the cause of women’s suffrage in the First wave. A passionate and active feminist, she helped contribute to the protesting and lobbying which got the 19th Amendment passed. Her book Jailed for Freedom was very influential in showing the public the struggles women went through to win the vote and the power women inherently held. Despite social norms, Stevens was a “symbol of New Womanhood” (Rupp, 2000) making strides towards the sexual liberation of women and equality in marriage. Her dedication to women’s rights and openness to change was greatly beneficial to the cause of the First Wave.
Doris Steven’s was extremely courageous and strong. Her dedication to women’s suffrage and liberation, especially through her acts of militancy through protest and her challenge of societal norms, shows her immense bravery. She risked her own safety and relationships on several occasions to work toward a more equal future. She believed in the cause enough to sacrifice things in her life, not just for her but for future generations of women. Her participation in these movements helped pave the way for women after her and inspired women around her to challenge tradition and injustice.
References
(ca. 1919) Doris Stevens, Legislative Chairman, National Woman’s Party. New York United States, ca. 1919. [Photograph] Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/item/mnwp000169/.
Doris, S. (1920). Jailed For Freedom. New York: Boni and Liveright.
Historical Overview of the National Womans Party. (n.d.). The Library of Congress. https://www.loc.gov/collections/women-of-protest/articles-and-essays/historical-overview-of-the-national-womans-party/
Rupp, L. (2000). Stevens, Doris Caroline (1888-1963), Suffragist and Feminist Activist. American National Biography. https://www-anb-org.offcampus.lib.washington.edu/view/10.1093/anb/9780198606697.001.0001/anb-9780198606697-e-1500651.
Trigg, M. K. (2014). Feminism as Life’s Work: Four Modern American Women through Two World Wars. n.p.: Rutgers University Press.