Women's Rights and Abolitionism Elizabeth Cady Stanton, a longtime advocate for women's rights, said in a speech to the American Anti-Slavery Society: "Yes, this is the only organization on God's stool where the humanity of women is recognized, and these are the only men who have ever echoed its cries of justice and equality..." The American Rights Movement of women was largely a product of the struggle for abolition. Early leaders, like Stanton, began their fight for social justice with the cause of slavery and its already established movements. Anti-slavery organizations provided inspiration, a set of proven tactics, and a form of critical analysis that helped women as they later set out on their crusade for civil justice. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay The first anti-slavery conventions brought together some of the brightest and most eloquent men and women of the day. Together they discussed and debated the fundamental principles of human rights: justice, freedom and equality for all. Women, who had long been metaphorically in the same chains and shackles as black slaves, saw these conventions as an important building block of their own emancipation. As Emily Collins wrote: "Throughout the struggle against slavery, every word of denunciation of the wrongs of the Southern slaves was, in my opinion, equally applicable to the wrongs of my own sex." However, many clergymen who supported abolition were adamantly opposed to women's involvement in the struggle and lobbied extensively to exclude them. Stanton points out the irony of the situation by saying, “Many men who advocated equality most eloquently for a Southern plantation, could not tolerate it before their own hearth.” This action provoked a formal vote within the Anti-Slavery Society, which by a large majority decreed that women could take part in the work. However, the issue of women in the abolitionist movement was so controversial that a major split occurred between supporters of William Lloyd Garrison, who believed that women should be equal, and the Freedom Party, who thought that women speaking out would put the abolitionist movement is at risk. women attending antislavery conferences made it clear to Stanton and Lucretia Mott that they were in the same unfortunate position as the slaves they were trying to free. Buoyed by the idea of ​​unity against the tyranny that came with abolition, the first Women's Rights Convention was held in Seneca Falls, New York, on July 19 and 20, 1848. At the historic convention, Stanton and others proposed a Declaration of Sentiments, largely based on the Declaration of Independence. In it they presented a list of facts outlining their social inequality and a series of resolutions to mitigate them. Of particular importance was Resolution 9, which called for the vote for women. Interestingly, this resolution was the most hotly contested and barely passed thanks to the urging of Stanton and Mott. This was troubling to women's rights leaders who knew, from their abolition experience, that there could be no divisions within their group as they moved forward. Soon the demand for the vote became the centerpiece of the women's rights movement. During the Civil War, women's rights were eclipsed by the war effort and the movement to abolish slavery. Even though the annual meetings were held regularly, there was much discussion but..