A Pilgrimage to the Birthplace of the Modern Womens Rights Movement – AFAR Media

Just weeks before the dissolution of Roe v. Wade, a writer visits New Yorks Finger Lakes to reflect on how far the nation has comeand how far it has to go.

When you travel around New York States Finger Lakes region, you are frequently reminded of the areas foundational role in the history of womens rights. For every single scenic lakeside vista, there are multiple intellectually scenic places related to secular saints of American activism.

But maybe the thought-consuming nature of the areas human rights heritage isnt that surprising. After all, settings are times as well as places, and Im visiting the Finger Lakes at the time of the Supreme Courts hearings on the constitutionality of Roe v. Wade. Im also traveling with two members of my family who are lifelong, steadfast feminists. They come by that designation honestlyboth work (and excel) in fields within medicine that were extremely male-dominated when they entered the workforce in the 1960s and 80s, respectively.

To be fair, the Finger Lakes make an effort to distract us from thoughts of politics. Situated in the western portion of upstate New York, dozens of vineyards stretch down to the shores of the lakes that give the region its name. Members of the Amish community guide horse-drawn buggies through hamlets with classical names like Hector, Ovid, and Romulus. Driving past the many waterside wheatfields feels like immersing oneself in a living, breathing painting from theHudson River School. And yet, despite everything just mentioned, its the regions rich human rights history that makes it a truly unique destination.

The modern womens rights movement began humbly in a rather large church in the rather small town of Seneca Falls, New York. Although Seneca Falls was an important(-ish) transport hub in its day, it wasnt an obvious site for a radical social movement. The towns eventual importance can ultimately be attributed to the work of activist Elizabeth Cady Stanton, whose frequent hangouts in Seneca Falls now form the core ofWomens Rights National Historic Park. It was here that, in 1848, Stanton and others (most notably, Lucretia Mott andFrederick Douglass) participated in the Seneca Falls Convention, the first-ever convention for womens rights.

The Wesleyan chapel that housed the conventions meetings, along with a (wonderful) visitor center, comprise the heart of the national historic park. The daily lectures delivered in the chapel are especially informativeits like watching aMasterClass in human rights history. The conventions most enduring output was its Declaration of Sentiments, a persuasive call to action primarily written by Stanton (and heavily inspired by the Declaration of Independence) and deliberated in the very chapel where visitors learn about it.

Whats most shocking about the Declaration is how relevant its words remain today. Among other observations, Stanton wrote that the ruling class of (almost entirely) men had created a false public sentiment by giving to the world a different code of morals for men and women. (Rings true today, eh?)

Stanton is immensely quotableher Declaration of Sentiments is even etched in its entirety into a fountain on the side of the parks visitor center. Had she not been an activist, Stanton would likely still be known for her ability as a writer, and not just for her work on the Declaration of Sentiments. She was also the principal author of The Womans Bible, for example, which is chock-full of pithy gems like, Men think that self-sacrifice is the most charming of all the cardinal virtues for women, and in order to keep it in healthy working order, they make opportunities for its illustration as often as possible.

In an era with more opportunities for women, she may have even been a prominent politician. Actually, in this alternate history, Stanton probably would have been better suited to serving as the most trusted vizier to another icon of American human rights activism, Susan B. Anthony. The two first met in Seneca Falls in 1851 when Anthony was visiting mutual friend and fellow activist Amelia Bloomer (who, among other claims to fame, lent her name to the pioneering trousers known as bloomers).

Stantons Seneca Falls home is also housed within the national historic park. The park ranger there encourages visitors to imagine the many influential leaders who met with Stanton there, none more frequently than Anthony. Although Anthony lived in Rochester (also in upstate New York, but not in the Finger Lakes), she was a frequent guest at Stantons home.

In the half-century following the Seneca Falls Convention, Stanton and Anthonys complementary skill sets would propel the womens rights movement into the 20th century. Their collaborative efforts were most evident in their prose. Stanton would often provide the rhetoric that Anthony would then deliver in speeches across the country. Or, in Stantons words, I forged the thunderbolts, she fired them.

What is most striking about the Finger Lakes human rights heritage is that Elizabeth Cady Stanton isnt even the most famous human rights activist with ties to the area. Although she was not present at the Seneca Falls Convention, Harriet Tubman spent the latter half of her life living in Auburn, 15 miles east of Seneca Falls at the crown of Cayuga Lake.

After visiting Tubmans home at AuburnsHarriet Tubman National Historical Park, I emerge with the opinion that, if a person doesnt admire Harriet Tubman, it can only be because they dont know enough about her. Although most famous forher flawless record as a conductor on the Underground Railroad, Tubman was also a womens rights activist, abolitionist, nurse, and Union spy during the Civil War, among many other roles. In fact, Tubman was the first woman to lead a major U.S. military operation, commanding a unit of 150 troops ona mission that liberated 700 slaves from a South Carolina plantation in 1863. Shes remarkableI cant think of another person like her. A visit to Tubmans gravesite at Fort Hill Cemetery (also in Auburn) feels as sacred as anything Ive encountered at a religious site.

With the history of womens rights on our minds as we depart Seneca Falls and Auburn, my family and I discuss our anxieties concerning the Supreme Courts looming decision (our worst fears would later be realized). While Womens Rights National Historical Park helps visitors remember that the United States was once on the vanguard of the womens rights movement, it can be difficult to remember that fact today. We miss Stantons eloquence in the modern age. She could probably cut through todays hateful rhetoric with a suggestion as simple and elegant as, Truth is the only safe ground to stand upon.

Its easy to imagine which side of todays debate Stanton wouldve landed onshe presciently predicted modern objections to womens ownership of their own decisions, writing in The Womens Bible that men never fail to dwell on maternity as a disqualification for the possession of many civil and political rights.

It is, however, a small (but vocal) minority of men who feel this way these daysin fact, the majority of American men support legalized abortion. The vast majority of American women polled also believe that decisions about terminating a pregnancy should be left to a woman and her doctor, including a majority of women in both major political parties. And, if the anti-abortion wings goal really is reducing the total number of abortions, then its useful to note that restricting access to abortion does not reduce the number of abortions.

Some data even suggest that abortions becomeslightly more common in areas where the procedure is prohibited (likely owing to the overlap between anti-abortion and anti-contraceptive ideologies). Put succinctly, the Supreme Courts ruling makes the U.S. a global outlier when it comes to reproductive rights,joining North Korea and Belarus on a short list of countries that have decreased access to abortion in the last 30 years.

My family and I continue discussing these topics in the context of the pending Supreme Court decision with an increasing sense of despondency. Then, with ideal timing, the Finger Lakes natural beauty successfully distracts us from our worries, if only temporarily.

At the southern edge of the Finger Lakes region, my mothers and I spontaneously decide to stop at Watkins Glen State Park and are spellbound. The parks centerpiece is a moss-covered gorge whose already gorgeous vistas are punctuated by 19 (!) waterfalls. The place is an Eden, or a Narnia, or Rivendell, or all three combined, plus it somehow looks even better in the rain. This sliver of placid paradise wrested from mountain (and moral) wilderness makes us feel optimistic.

Perhaps the unrelenting natural beauty of the Finger Lakes refreshed the depleted reserves of hope of activists like Stanton and others when experience pushed them toward hopelessness.Womens suffrage had far less popular support in Stantons time than reproductive rights do today. And yet, womens suffrage was eventually achieved. Despite occasional appearances to the contrary, the history of human rights in the U.S. is mostly a story of increased access to rights, albeit often slow and bittersweet.

Stanton maintained no misconceptions about the difficulties she and her comrades-in-arms would face. In entering upon the great work before us, she wrote in the Declaration of Sentiments, we anticipate no small amount of misconception, misrepresentation, and ridicule; but we shall use every instrumentality within our power to effect our object.

At the same time, she also harbored zero doubts about the moral universes eventual arc toward justice. Come, come, my conservative friend, she wrote. Wipe the dew off your spectacles, and see that the world is moving.

Much of the Finger Lakes human rights history can be experienced in two days (if you stay busy). Seneca Falls is an hours drive from Greater Rochester International Airport, and only two hours from Buffalo Niagara International Airport. Renting a car is the best way to make the trip, as public transportation is limited. If you are starting in Rochester, be sure to stop by theNational Susan B. Anthony Museum, located in the civil rights leaders home.

Home toWomens Rights National Historical Park, Seneca Falls is certainly a charming town (it was the inspiration for the fictional Bedford Falls inIts a Wonderful Life), but nearby Auburn and Geneva both offer more dining, lodging, and entertainment options (including live theater). Auburn is also home toHarriet Tubman National Historical Park. For a tour of the property, makereservations in advance. I couldnt recommend the tour more highly.

Tubmans grave is in the scenicFort Hill Cemetery, and she isnt the only famous person interred thereabolitionist (and former Secretary of State) William Seward is also buried on the property. Take the time to visitSewards home (also in Auburn). He was friends with Tubman and is a more inspiring figure himself than many people realizehis house was even a station on the Underground Railroad.

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A Pilgrimage to the Birthplace of the Modern Womens Rights Movement - AFAR Media