Trump pardon rejected
Museum director calls for better way to honour Susan B Anthony's legacy
The Susan B Anthony Museum has rejected Donald Trump’s pardon of the eponymous Quaker suffragist who was arrested in 1872 for voting when it was illegal for women to do so.
Susan B Anthony called her trial for voting ‘the greatest outrage History ever witnessed’. She was not allowed to speak as a witness in her own defence, because she was a woman, and was denied a trial by jury. Deborah L Hughes, the executive director of the Susan B Anthony Museum and House, issued a statement condemning Trump’s pardon, pointing out that the American social reformer had proclaimed ‘I shall never pay a dollar of your unjust penalty’ after the judge had declared her guilty. ‘To pay would have been to validate the proceedings’, she said. ‘To pardon Susan B Anthony does the same.’
A better way to honour Anthony’s legacy, she said, was to stand against voter suppression in all its forms and back the Equal Rights Amendment. ‘Advocacy for human rights for all would be splendid. Anthony was also a strong proponent of sex education, fair labour practices, excellent public education, equal pay for equal work, and elimination of all forms of discrimination.’
The US social reformer and activist was proud of her Quaker roots and described herself as a Quaker throughout her life.
