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Mary Edwards Walker Research Paper

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Mary Edwards Walker was one of the first feminists. She showed women what they were capable of in a time when they could not even believe in themselves. During Civil War times, a woman fighting alongside men and acting as a man did was unheard of. She was one of very few women who was willing to stand up and stand out for what she believed was right. She wore men’s clothing with pride, and she was arrested several times for “wearing full male dress, including wing collar, bow tie, and top hat” (“Mary Edwards”) (See Appendix A). Walker was one of the first dress reformists. She started a movement that gave women the freedom to choose to wear the clothing they wanted. The dress reformists’ movement has affected all of society. Women are no longer expected to wear clothing that restrict movement and make it physically impossible for them to do …show more content…

Modern day women are allowed to wear anything they choose, thanks to the works of Dr. Walker and the dress reformists. Dress reform was not the only feminist ideal Walker had an impact on. She also fought for women’s suffrage. After the war was over, Walker traveled, lecturing on the topic of suffrage. However, she did not stand behind the suffrage amendment. She “did not support a proposed suffrage amendment, contending that the right to vote was already contained in the Constitution” (“Mary Walker”). She tried to vote, sticking with this claim. At the polls, she was turned away. The year Walker died, 1919, the amendment was passed, and women across the nation were given the freedom to vote. Because of Dr. Walker’s bravery and because she chose to stand with the suffragists, women today are allowed to vote on every topic men can. Mary Edwards Walker was one of the first feminists, and women today own it to her for their freedom of dress and

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