Matilda Gage was a strong supporter of freedom. She was one of the leading figures in the women’s rights and suffrage movement during the mid-1800s. Gage was born on March 24, 1826 in Cicero, New York and was raised in a house dedicated to antislavery. (`Matilda Joslyn Gage Foundation`) The activist and free thinker Matilda Joslyn Gage is relevant in today’s American culture because of her work in the abolitionist movement which led to the emancipation of slaves; her pioneering work to start the woman’s suffrage movement with Susan B. Anthony that sought equal rights for woman; and her views on religion and how it influenced the women’s suffrage movement.
She was exposed as a young child to the abolitionist movement and her childhood home was…
She was considered a radical on her view of the separation of church and state because many of her suffragist sisters felt the church was an important part of their beliefs. Gage felt that religion and the church actively repressed women while reinforcing the belief that men were superior. Her relevance to American culture today was her staunch support for separation of church and state which would lead to the Supreme Court’s interpretation of the first amendment to the constitution. In the years ahead the contours of religious liberty will continue to shift as compromises are made and cultures are integrated; this dynamism comprises the essential strength of “government of the people, by the people, and for the people.” (`Separation of Church and State`…
Every level in the economic, political, and cultural life of this country has expanded to include the participation of blacks as well as women thanks in part to Gages work on these efforts. Separation of church and state has been part of the nation’s legal and cultural nomenclature since the early 1800s. Although organized religion is not as strong as in the past, today’s culture of America encompasses many Christian…
