"In Congress, a few voices spoke out against the war. The first woman in the House of Representatives, Jeannette Rankin, did not respond when her name was called in the roll call on the declaration of war. One of the veteran politicians of the House, a supporter of the war, went to her and whispered, "Little woman, you cannot afford not to vote. You represent the womanhood of the country. Next roll call she stood up: "I want to stand by my country, but I cannot vote for war. I vote No.""
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Members of the United States House of RepresentativesWomen activists from the United StatesWomen's rights activistsRepublican Party (United States) politiciansWomen politicians in the United States
Original Language: English
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Sources
Howard Zinn, A People’s History of the United States
https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Jeannette_Rankin
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Jeannette Rankin
Jeannette Pickering Rankin (June 11, 1880 – May 18, 1973) was an American politician and women's rights advocate, and the first woman to hold federal office in the United States. She was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives as a Republican from Montana in 1916, and again in 1940.
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