Susan B. Anthony
The second of eight children of a Quaker cotton manufacturer and abolitionist and his wife, Susan B. Anthony learned to read and write when she was three years old. Her father structured her upbringing around self discipline, principled beliefs and self esteem. After her family lost everything in a financial crash, Anthony became a teacher and was galvanized into activism by the pay inequities in her profession. Despite her support for racial equality, she narrowed her focus as an activist after the Fifteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution failed to give women, as well as men of color, the right to vote. She was co-founder of numerous women's rights groups and a tireless public speaker, giving 75 to 100 speeches a year for 45 years. Her boundless dedication to her cause continues to benefit the generations of women who are the beneficiaries of her life’s work.
Other Luminaries:
