In Colonial America women had no rights and were considered property of their husbands. This did not settle well with most of the women therefore creating some opposition. One of the main things women could not do was to vote. So until 1920 and the introduction of the 19th amendment women had to suffer and withstand persecution from other Americans. This suffering and hard work to create equal opportunities for both sexes created a better future for all of America's women and allowed women the right to vote.

             In colonial America, as elsewhere in the world, "civil law did not recognize the equality of men and women. The perception of inequality, which included the belief that women lacked the capacity to reason as well as men, provided the basis for not allowing women the right to vote."(Butler, 24) Even before the American Revolution (1776-1783), however, American women participated in public life somewhat more freely than European women. In most colonies land ownership, not gender, determined the right to vote. Although females had only limited property rights, women from families that owned property could sometimes vote, particularly if the male head of household was for some reason incapacitated. In Massachusetts women property holders had voting privileges from 1691 to 1780. At this point in time, groups such as the American Quakers, and some individuals, notably the American patriot Thomas Paine, also argued that women should possess the right to vote.

             After the American Revolution, the farmers of the Constitution of the United States reserved decisions about qualifications for voting to the individual states. By the early 19th century, most states had dropped the property qualification and extended voting rights to all adult males. By definition, laws giving only men the right to vote now excluded women solely on the basis of their gender. "In addition, by eliminating property ownership as a requirement for voting, these laws deprived women of the only legal claim for a right to vote that they previously had.