凱麗‧伯恩罕 (Carrie Burnham) 爭取投票權：1873年4月4日

你能想想你到了18歲還不能投票嗎？在19世紀時，身為老師與物理學家的凱麗‧伯恩罕 (後來改姓為基爾葛爾，Gilgore) 只因為女性的身份，而無法享有投票權。伯恩罕在1873年4月4日針對這個問題向賓州最高法院提出訴訟，她提出一個簡單的問題：美國憲法與賓州州憲法有無賦予女性公民投票的權利？她告訴法庭她相信婦女也應該擁有這樣權利，並且提出了相當完整且具體的陳述內容來支持她的論點。在那之前，伯恩罕其實已經為了這項議題抗議了很多年了。


Can you imagine not being allowed to vote once you reach eighteen years of age? Because she was a woman in the 19th century, teacher and physician Carrie S. Burnham (later Kilgore) was denied that right. Burnham took her argument to the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania on April 4, 1873, asking this simple question: "Have women citizens the right of suffrage (to vote) under the Constitution of the United States and of this particular State of Pennsylvania?" She told the court that she believed a woman should have that right and presented a thoughtful case to support her argument. By this time, Burnham's protest had been going on for several years.

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