Today, 15 February 2021, marks the 201st birthday of Susan B. Anthony.

Susan B Anthony was a lot of things. She was a teacher, a headmistress, a woman’s rights activist but most of all she was a person who devoted her life to creating change. A woman who wasn’t afraid to stand up for what she believed in, regardless of the consequence. A woman who spoke her mind, even when everyone around her disagreed.

Despite her hard life as a small-town teacher, and despite the fact that she was paid 75% less than male teachers, she persevered and went on the become one of the most influential women of the 1800’s. She was the first woman who voted in the US, and ultimately spent her life petitioning for the rights of slaves and women across America.

Even though she didn’t live to see it, Anthony was instrumental in the groundwork of the suffrage movement and its success. The 19th Amendment, which boasts her name as the Susan B. Anthony Amendment, adopted in 1920, gave every adult American woman the right to cast her vote.

You can read a very interesting article on Susan B. Anthony here: https://ammo.com/articles/susan-b-anthony-forgotten-history-woman-inspired-19th-amendment-womens-rights and w4mp thanks Ammo.com for getting in touch to bring it to our attention.

Susan B. Anthony’s 1872 speech ‘On Women’s Right to Vote’ has previously been cited by w4mp as a great speech in our guide to Writing a Speech and you can read it in full here: https://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/content/anthony-vote-speech.html

Did you know that there are several groups which MPs’ staff can join?  There’s sports and social groups, workplace equality networks, religious groups, and groups which provide support and representation.

You can find a list of them here: https://w4mp.org/w4mp/w4mp-guides/groups-which-staff-can-join/

If you know of any other groups which are open to staff, but we have not listed, please do let us know by emailing [email protected] and we would be happy to add them to our site.

At 11:00 every Wednesday, there is an MPs’ Office Managers’ Drop-in on Microsoft Teams.

During these meetings, you can learn about and discuss various topic, including, but not limited to:

• House of Commons updates
• Security information
• Information about Parliamentary Digital Services
• Information about IPSA
• Information and support relating to wellness and wellbeing

You also have the opportunity to put your questions to the Members’ Services Team and to other Office Managers about anything relevant to your work.

If you are an MP’s Office Manager (or if your office does not have one, an appropriate alternative) and have not received an invitation to the regular weekly drop-ins, please email your details to  [email protected] and ask to be added.