“Mr. President, How Long Must We Wait?: Alice Paul, Woodrow Wilson and the Fight for the Right to Vote” with Tina Cassidy

The day before Woodrow Wilson took the presidential oath of office in 1913, he expected a throng of onlookers when he arrived in Washington.  He was upstaged by one woman–twenty-five-year old Alice Paul—and 8,000 suffragists, who marched with banners and floats down Pennsylvania Avenue to the White House. A half million spectators, supporters and detractors watched.  The New York Times called it “one of the most impressively beautiful spectacles ever staged in this country.”  The new president called the spectacle’s organizer for a one-on-one meeting. It was the first of many discussions between the two, but none led to equality.  In 1917, Paul and over 1,000 “Silent Sentinels” began picketing the White House. The Washington Post reported that their goal was to make it “impossible for the President to enter or leave the White House without encountering a sentinel bearing some device pleading the suffrage cause.” One of those signs read, “Mr. President, How Long Must Women Wait for Liberty?” Well, they waited until June 4, 1919 when the 19^th Amendment passed Congress. Now, a century later, this compelling book weaves together two storylines: the little-known suffragette and the well-known president.  While they seemed to be complete opposites, they actually had more in common that either could imagine.  Tickets: $10.00.