Robin Carnahan: “when I think of women who have put their stamp on history, I think of so many ``Wonder Women'' from Lucretia Mott to…”

“when I think of women who have put their stamp on history, I think of so many ``Wonder Women'' from Lucretia Mott to Eleanor Roosevelt to Sally Ride. While these names are recognizable to all of us, there are others--teachers, mothers, grandmothers--who are unsung heroines. They are women who greatly influenced our lives. I have also come to admire our 19th-century counterparts--the women who were warriors on the front lines of the slavery, suffrage, and temperance battles. These early advocates of social justice continue to inspire us today. With few resources at their command, they were forced to use the power of ideas to affect change. The pen became a mighty sword; the voice, a thunderous cannon. They shook the 19th century. Two of these women were contemporaries. They were both reared in New England, were married, had large families and overwhelming personal responsibilities. They were especially sensitive to injustice. Both changed the thinking of the nation on the dominant issues of their day. Beyond that, the similarities cease. One was from a prominent family, the daughter of a renowned clergyman. Unlike most women of her time, she was well-educated--a teacher and a writer. The other woman was a slave, unable to read or write. But she could speak, and did that quite well. One was Harriet Beecher Stowe, the author of Uncle Tom's Cabin--the woman whose writings did more to arouse the conscience of the nation against slavery than anyone of her day.…”