Government

Dedication of Tennessee Blue Book to 100th anniversary of 19th Amendment

NASHVILLE PRIDE — Tennessee played a pivotal role in ratifying the amendment giving women the right to vote. Tennessee Secretary of State Tre Hargett announced the 2019-2020 edition of the Tennessee Blue Book will be dedicated to the 100th anniversary of the ratification of the 19th Amendment granting women the right to vote.

Published

7 years ago

April 3, 2019

Oakland Post

By Pride News

Tennessee played a pivotal role in ratifying the amendment giving women the right to vote.

Tennessee Secretary of State Tre Hargett announced the 2019-2020 edition of the Tennessee Blue Book will be dedicated to the 100th anniversary of the ratification of the 19th Amendment granting women the right to vote.

“Tennessee played a pivotal role in ratifying the 19th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, so it is appropriate to dedicate our state’s official historical reference, the Tennessee Blue Book, to this important milestone,” Hargett said. “During Women’s History Month, it’s important to remember the Women’s Suffrage Movement across the country, and especially here in Tennessee, which led to this significant moment in our nation’s history.”

Initially introduced to Congress in 1878, the 19th Amendment was not submitted to the states for ratification until 1919 and was ratified by three-fourths of the states a year later. Tennessee ratification on August 18, 1920 was the last state needed to amend the Constitution.

Published by the Secretary of State’s office once every two years, the Tennessee Blue Book serves as a state and government manual for Tennessee. It includes information on Tennessee state history and government, biographies of elected and appointed state officials, elections results, census data and more.

The Blue Book dedication will honor the continuous and unwavering effort by Tennessee suffragists and the significant role Tennessee played in guaranteeing all women the right to vote.

“One hundred years ago, a Tennessee legislator and his influential mother changed the course of history becoming one of the deciding votes in ratification of the 19th Amendment. It is only fitting we recognize Tennessee’s pivotal role in the suffrage movement with a commemorative edition of the definitive guide to Tennessee state government, the Tennessee Blue Book,” Tennessee Lt. Gov. Randy McNally (R-Oak Ridge) said. “I am grateful to the Office of the Secretary of State and its Division of Publications for putting together this special edition in honor of this important anniversary.”

“We are proud of Tennessee’s important role in ratifying the 19th Amendment to our U.S. Constitution and the decisive part our state played in the nation’s history,” said Tennessee House Speaker Glen Casada (R-Franklin). “I am pleased to join with Secretary Hargett to celebrate this remarkable development which led to women gaining the right to vote, and I stand with my Republican colleagues as we continue our work addressing the critical needs of all Tennessee.”

The 2019-20 Tennessee Blue Book will be a commemorative edition similar to the 2013-2014 edition dedicated to former University of Tennessee Lady Vols Coach Pat Summitt. The next edition will be published and ready for distribution in early 2020.

Black Women and Suffrage Movement

Anna Julia Cooper

The largest and best-known women’s suffrage group during the last quarter of the 19th century was the Woman’s Christian Temperance Union, (WCTU) founded in 1874. Their policies encouraged separate Black and White unions, but at least one White woman, Amelia Bloomer, campaigned against racism within the movement, and some Black women did rise to positions of prominence. Frances Harper, for one, was most effective in recruiting Black women to the cause and was eventually appointed to the national office.

Among Black women who were staunch suffragists was Anna Julia Cooper, best known for her statement: “Only the Black woman can say when and where I enter in the quiet undisputed dignity of my womanhood, without violence or special patronage. Then and there the whole Negro race enters with me.” Cooper was particularly effective in emphasizing to Black women that they required the ballot to counter the belief that “Black men’s” experiences and needs were the same as theirs.

Despite the racial divisions, Black women were collective in their courage in the fight for equality. Ida B. Wells-Barnett, the journalist who led an anti-lynching campaign in the late 19th century, organized the Alpha Suffrage Club among Black women in Chicago and brought members with her to participate in the 1913 suffrage parade in Washington, D.C. The organizers of the march asked that they walk at the end of the parade. She tried to get the White Illinois delegation to support her opposition of this segregation, but found few supporters.

They either would march at the end or not at all. Ida refused to march, but as the parade progressed, Ida emerged from the crowd and joined the White Illinois delegation, marching between two White supporters. She refused to comply with the segregation.

This article originally appeared in the Nashville Pride.

Oakland Post

Posts by Oakland Post

Up Next

The Center for Advancing Opportunity Commends the Announcement of New Federal Scholarship for K-12

Don't Miss

Birmingham students get seat at political roundtable in D.C.

Oakland Post

Click to comment

Community

Four Candidates, Including Incumbent Barbara Lee, Qualify for Oakland Mayor’s Race

POST NEWS GROUP — Four candidates, including incumbent Mayor Barbara Lee, filed their papers to run for office by last Friday’s deadline, and the City Clerk issued a list this week of those who are qualified to run.

Published

1 day ago

August 15, 2026

bpusa-syndication

View of downtown Oakland, California and City Hall. iStock photo.

By Post Staff

The four mayoral candidates who will appear on the Nov. 3 ballot are:

Brenda Grisham. A business owner in East Oakland and public safety advocate, Grisham led the successful recall campaign against Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price. As part of her platform, she pledges to work with local, state, and federal partners to secure stricter gun control measures and investments in community violence intervention programs.

Barbara Lee. A former congressional representative and state Assembly member, Lee was elected by voters in a special election last year for a two-year term. Now running for a four-year term, she points out that her administration achieved major successes in addressing some of the city’s major challenges, including balancing the city budget, dramatically reducing crime, and making significant inroads into homelessness and illegal dumping.

Mindy Pechenuk. An educator and activist, Pechenuk is a registered Republican and supporter of Lyndon LaRouche, who has been described by observers as a conspiracy theorist and cult leader. She ran unsuccessfully for mayor in last year’s special election and for the at-large council seat in 2024. She seeks to end Oakland’s police commission and MACRO and invest in more police while launching a new local war on drugs.

Julius Robinson. While little information is available so far about Robinson, he was quoted in a KTVU story about Thao’s recall, stating that people in Oakland want to come together as a community but lack infrastructure and leadership.

bpusa-syndication

Posts by bpusa-syndication

Activism

Oakland Post: Week of August 12 – 18, 2026

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of August 12 – 18, 2026

Published

1 day ago

August 15, 2026

Oakland Post

To enlarge your view of this issue, use the slider, magnifying glass icon or full page icon in the lower right corner of the browser window.

Oakland Post

Posts by Oakland Post

Commentary

COMMENTARY: Why Local School Tax Measure G1 Will Not Be on the November Ballot

POST NEWS GROUP — Measure G1 is the local tax measure that supports middle school teacher retention and the expansion of arts, music, and world language programs at both OUSD middle schools and charter middle schools. The current measure expires in 2029.

Published

1 day ago

August 15, 2026

bpusa-syndication

By Jennifer Brouhard, Oakland School Board President

There has been considerable speculation recently about why Measure G1 will not appear on the November ballot and what that means for the Oakland Unified School District’s current budget.

I want to provide some clarity about what happened and, importantly, what did not happen.

Measure G1 is the local tax measure that supports middle school teacher retention and the expansion of arts, music, and world language programs at both OUSD middle schools and charter middle schools. The current measure expires in 2029.

Because these funds are important to our schools and to the continuity of these programs, the district initially intended to place a renewal initiative on the November ballot to provide greater early certainty about funding beyond the expiration of the current measure.

As part of that process, the Board scheduled a special meeting for the required public hearing on the ballot initiative. There has been some suggestion that this meeting was noticed only one day in advance. That is not accurate.

Public hearings of this nature are subject to specific notice requirements, and the meeting must be noticed at least two weeks before the hearing. In practice, the notice may appear even earlier depending on publication schedules. The notice for the Measure G1 public hearing was published in the Tribune on 7/24/2026 and 7/31/2026.

So, why wasn’t the Measure G1 paperwork ultimately filed?

After the Board approved placing the measure on the ballot, the next step required the Alameda County Superintendent of Schools to sign the necessary paperwork before it could be submitted to the Oakland City Clerk.

During that process, Alameda County Superintendent Alysse Castro raised concerns about potential litigation stemming from another court case unrelated to OUSD and about whether proceeding with the measure could expose the district or County to legal challenges. Superintendent Castro’s action is unprecedented and concerning.

It is important to distinguish between the Board’s decision to pursue Measure G1 and the subsequent procedural and legal issues that arose. The Board did approve moving forward with the measure. The measure did not fail because the Board chose not to support it, nor was the public hearing improperly noticed.

The decision not to proceed with the November ballot was made in light of the County’s concerns about potential litigation and the County’s required approval process.

We also need to be clear about what this does, and does not, mean for OUSD’s current budget. The existing Measure G1 funds remain available through the expiration of the current measure in 2029. The immediate issue is the longer-term continuity of funding beyond that date, not the elimination of these resources from the current year’s budget.

Our responsibility as a Board is to protect the educational programs and services our students depend on while ensuring that our decisions comply with the law and protect the district from unnecessary legal and financial risk.

We will continue working to understand the County’s concerns, explore our options, and advocate for the resources our students deserve. Our middle school students, teachers, and school communities deserve stability, and continued investment in arts, music, world languages, and teacher retention—and that work remains a priority for Oakland Unified.

Jennifer Brouhard is a retired OUSD educator and is the current OUSD School Board President representing District 2.