*Stage Directors 1, 2 and 3 (SD1, SD2, SD3)
*Franny Bowen, a 14-year-old girl
*Aunt Kate Ewing, Franny’s aunt
Lucy, a suffragist leader
Hazel, a suffragist
Characters
Choose the character you will play.
*Starred characters have large speaking parts.
Randy Pollak
The Night of Terror
All the women wanted was the right to vote. For that, they were attacked, arrested, and thrown in jail. Now it’s up to Franny to help them.
By Spencer Kayden, inspired by true events
From the March 2020 Issue
Learning Objective: to identify and synthesize key ideas and details from an informational text and a historical play about a little known event in the women’s suffrage movement
Complexity Factors
Lexiles: 910L (captions and informational text)
Featured Skill:
Key Ideas and Details,
Other Key Skills: character, interpreting text, inference, symbolism, synthesis
Common Core Standards
TEKS Standards
Prologue
SD1: Franny, Aunt Kate, Lucy, Hazel, and Maud stand onstage. They speak directly to the audience.
Franny: This is a story about a different time in America.
Aunt Kate: A time when women have few rights.
Lucy: It is difficult for us to own property or hold the same kinds of jobs as men.
Hazel: Worst of all? We cannot vote.
Maud: But across the country, we are working hard to change that.
Aunt Kate: We are called suffragists.
Lucy: Being a suffragist isn’t easy. We are mocked and scorned—
Hazel: —attacked and jailed.
Franny: But we refuse to give up.
Harris & Ewing/Buyenlarge/Getty Images
SPEAKING TRUTH TO POWER
The suffragists in this play were part of the National Woman’s Party. They burned copies of President Woodrow Wilson’s speeches, marched through the streets, held parades, and protested outside the White House. They were attacked, yelled at, and frequently arrested. But they refused to give up.
What does this picture tell you?
What do you think disenfranchisement means? Why do you think the suffragists chose to hold this sign in front of the White House?
SCENE 1
The Ewing House, Washington, D.C.,
November 1917
SD2: Franny stands outside the door of a grand house.
Uncle Walter (from offstage): You go on in, Franny. I will bring your suitcase.
SD3: The front of the house lifts away to reveal an elegant dining room. The room bustles with activity.
SD1: Women are busy making banners and signs.
SD2: Maud rushes in with a basket of sandwiches. She sees Franny.
Maud: Oh, good! More hands.
SD3: She gives the basket to Franny.
Maud: Will you carry this?
Franny: Um . . . sure.
SD1: Roy walks in and drops a heap of banners on top of the basket.
Roy: And these too?
Franny: I . . . I guess?
SD2: Maud and Roy grab a bunch of signs.
Maud: Let’s go!
Franny (confused): Go where?
Maud: Aren’t you here to help?
Franny: I’m Franny.
SD3: Maud and Roy stare at her blankly.
Franny: Your cousin? From Nebraska?
Maud and Roy: Oh! Franny!
Roy: I am sorry we didn’t recognize you.
Franny: I haven’t seen you in almost 10 years.
Maud: That’s right. It was at your mother’s . . .
SD1: Maud inhales sharply.
Maud: I’m so sorry.
Franny: It’s OK. You can say it. My mother’s funeral.
SD2: They are all quiet for a moment.
Roy: Your father is overseas fighting, right?
Franny: Yes. He is stationed in France. Say, where are we going with all this stuff?
Maud: You’ll see!
GHI/Universal Images Group via Getty Images
Suffragists were the first to hold protests in front of the White House.
Scene 2
In Front of the White House
Universal History Archive/Getty Images
President Woodrow Wilson
SD3: Maud and Roy lead Franny down Pennsylvania Avenue.
SD1: Moments later they arrive at the White House.
Franny (in awe): I can’t believe I’m looking at the actual White House, where the President of the United States lives!
Roy (pointing): His car comes through that gate. You might even see him.
SD2: A group of suffragists, including Aunt Kate, enter. They wear long skirts, wide-brimmed hats, and purple-white-and-gold sashes.
SD3: The women stand silently, holding large signs and banners.
Franny (reading a banner): “MR. PRESIDENT, HOW LONG MUST WOMEN WAIT FOR LIBERTY?” (to Maud and Roy) What is this?
Maud: It’s a protest.
Franny: About what?
Roy: You haven’t heard? Women have been picketing in front of the White House since January.
Franny: Why?
Maud: For suffrage—the right to vote.
Franny: Doesn’t the President have enough to deal with? Our country is at war.
SD1: A crowd gathers. People start shouting.
Bystander 1: Stop harassing President Wilson!
Bystander 2: This is unpatriotic! It is treason!
Bystander 3: Who will raise the children if the women start voting?
SD2: Bystanders start tearing the banners out of the suffragists’ hands.
SD3: One bystander grabs Aunt Kate’s sash and rips it. She stumbles to the ground.
SD1: Maud and Roy rush to help. Franny hangs back.
Roy: Mother! Are you all right?
Aunt Kate: I’m fine. At least they’re not throwing tomatoes today.
SD2: Aunt Kate sees Franny.
Aunt Kate: Franny!
SD3: Aunt Kate throws her arms around Franny.
Aunt Kate: I’d know you anywhere. (choking back tears) You look so much like your mother.
SD1: Before Franny can reply, the police rush in.
Officer 1: Time to go home, ladies.
Hazel: Why? We are not breaking any laws.
Officer 1: Go, or we’ll arrest you.
Lucy: We are not leaving!
Officer 2: This is your last warning. Clear out!
SD2: The women don’t budge.
Officer 2: Fine. Into the police wagon. NOW!
Aunt Kate (to Roy and Maud): Tell your father I won’t be home for dinner.
Maud: Wait! Mother! (holding out the basket) In case you get hungry.
SD3: An officer snatches the basket and dumps the sandwiches on the ground.
Franny: Your mother was just . . . arrested!
Roy (shrugging): She gets arrested all the time.
Franny: What?!
Maud: She’ll be sent home later with the others. Then they’ll have to go before the judge. He usually sentences them to a couple days in jail.
Franny: They should be ashamed. Why aren’t they helping with the war effort?
SD1: Maud and Roy look at each other. There is an awkward silence.
Scene 3
The Ewing House, Late That Night
SD2: Aunt Kate enters to find Franny wrapped in a blanket, sitting in front of a crackling fire.
Aunt Kate: Couldn’t sleep?
SD3: Franny shakes her head.
Aunt Kate: Want some hot cocoa?
Franny: I have never had it before.
Aunt Kate: Well, you’re in for a treat.
SD1: Franny follows Aunt Kate to the kitchen and watches her warm some milk on the stove.
Aunt Kate: All this must be quite different from the farm back in Nebraska.
Franny: I don’t know . . . it’s just . . . I miss my dad.
Aunt Kate: I am sure your father will come home safe from the war.
Franny: But what if he doesn’t?
Aunt Kate: Then you’ll stay here with us.
SD2: Aunt Kate stirs chocolate into the milk.
Franny (hesitantly): Aunt Kate, why do you stand outside the White House like that? It seems so crazy.
Aunt Kate (laughing): I’ve been called worse.
Franny: I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to offend you.
Aunt Kate: It’s OK. We stand there because as long as women’s voices are silenced, we are not really citizens.
Franny: But what about the war?
Aunt Kate: The war is on our minds every day. And if women can vote, this country will be stronger than ever.
SD3: Aunt Kate pours the hot cocoa into a mug and gives it to Franny.
Franny: This is delicious!
SD1: Aunt Kate smiles.
Aunt Kate: If your mother were here, I think she’d be out there picketing with us.
Franny: Really?
SD2: Aunt Kate pulls an old letter out of a small box.
Aunt Kate: I saved this for you. Your mother sent it a few months before she got sick.
SD3: Franny takes the letter and reads it aloud.
Franny: “My dearest Kate, I’ve been lying to James. Before you get upset, I’ll explain. I’ve been going to meetings of the Woman’s Suffrage Association.”
SD1: Franny’s eyes widen.
Franny (still reading): “Do you know that if James were to die, Franny and I would likely be unable to keep the farm? Why? Because we’re women.” (to Aunt Kate) My mother was a suffragist?
Aunt Kate: Keep reading.
Franny (reading): “What kind of life can we expect for our daughters if they have no rights, no freedoms? I’m working up the courage to tell James. Your loving sister, Anna. P.S. Franny’s favorite word is ‘potato.’”
Aunt Kate: After she died, I swore I would do anything to make this country a better place for you and Maud.
SD2: Franny tucks the letter into her pocket.
Archive Photos/Getty Images
A TIME OF WAR
4.7 million Americans fought in World War I (1914-1918). Suffragists were harshly criticized for continuing to work for the vote during wartime
Scene 4
A Courtroom, the Next Day
SD3: Franny, Uncle Walter, Roy, and Maud sit in a packed courtroom. Aunt Kate and the other suffragists stand before a judge.
Judge: You’ve been charged with obstructing traffic. The fine is 25 dollars.
Franny (quietly): But they weren’t blocking traffic.
Uncle Walter: I know. They were arrested for picketing, but the court won’t admit that.
Franny: Why not?
Uncle Walter: Because in America, people are supposed to be free to express their opinions.
Aunt Kate: We will not pay. We are innocent.
Judge: If you don’t pay, you will go to jail.
Lucy: We are sending our sons and husbands to fight for democracy overseas. Yet we are thrown in jail for demanding democracy at home?
Judge: Silence!
Hazel: There are 30 of us in your courtroom today. Tomorrow, there will be 60!
Judge (banging a gavel): Order!
Aunt Kate: Until women can vote, our fight will go on!
Judge: I hereby sentence you to 60 days in the workhouse!
SD1: There is a collective gasp in the courtroom.
SD2: Franny turns to Uncle Walter.
Franny: This is wrong!
Library of Congress
A LONG STRUGGLE
By 1917, the fight for women’s suffrage had been going on for some 70 years. There were countless suffrage groups all over the country. This photo shows women from the Woman’s National Baptist Convention. Suffrage was one of their key causes.
What would you do?
Think about the tactics suffragists used. Would you use similar tactics today in working for a cause? What else might you try?
Scene 5
The Workhouse, Virginia, the Next Night
SD3: Franny, Roy, and Maud approach a large brick building. A guard stands in front.
Maud: Excuse me, sir? My mother is inside. Mrs. Kate Ewing? We are here to visit her.
Guard: No visitors allowed.
Franny: Please. We have some food and books for her.
Guard: Those ladies get nothing. Nobody can see them.
Franny (whispering to Maud and Roy): Follow me.
SD1: Franny, Maud, and Roy sneak around to the back of the building, where they see rows of windows.
Franny (pointing): Look up there. That window is slightly open.
SD2: Franny whistles quietly.
SD3: Moments later, a scrap of paper flutters down.
Maud (reading): “Last night was brutal.”
SD1: The front of the workhouse lifts away, revealing the filthy jail cells inside.
SD2: The suffragists wear coarse prison dresses and look haggard. They speak to the audience.
Hazel: Never have we been treated so badly. I was thrown against the bars of my cell so hard that I blacked out.
Lucy: I spent the whole night in handcuffs.
Aunt Kate: Guards slammed me into a bench. Twice.
Hazel: We are calling it the Night of Terror.
Aunt Kate: Make sure people know. Help them understand. Only when they understand will they become our allies.
SD3: Maud looks up at Franny and Roy.
Franny: We have to get this published.
Library of Congress
UNJUSTLY JAILED
In 1917, 33 women from the National Woman’s Party were arrested while picketing outside the White House. They were imprisoned at the Occoquan Workhouse, a jail where inmates were forced to work without pay. On November 14, the women were beaten and tortured. That date became known as the Night of Terror. Their horrific treatment helped win public support for women’s suffrage.
The character of Lucy is based on the real Lucy Burns. Lucy spent more time in jail than any other suffragist. This photo was taken at the workhouse.
Scene 6
The Streets of Washington, D.C., One Week Later
SD1: Franny, Maud, and Roy stand on the street passing out The Suffragist newspaper.
SD2: People take copies and start to read.
Bystander 1: It says here that some of the women were handcuffed and isolated from each other.
Bystander 2: They refuse to eat until they are released.
Bystander 3: After seven days, they were forcibly fed.
Bystander 1: Tubes were put into their mouths and fluid poured into their stomachs.
Bystander 2: They gasped and choked.
SD3: The bystanders look up.
Bystander 3: I’m not for women voting, but this is an outrage!
Bystander 1: How can our government allow this?
Franny: It’s working! People are getting the message.
Go Wyoming!
In 1869, Wyoming became the first place in America where women could vote.
Scene 7
Outside a Train Station, Five Days Later
SD1: A crowd has gathered outside a train station. Franny, Maud, and Roy are there with Uncle Walter.
Uncle Walter: Thanks to you three getting the womens’ stories published, the government was pressured to release Kate and the others. The movement has more supporters than ever now!
SD2: The train doors open and the women walk out. They are weak and lean on each other.
SD3: The children run to them.
Maud: Mother!
Roy: You look like a ghost.
Aunt Kate: Getting public support made it all worth it.
SD1: Franny takes two purple-white-and-gold sashes out of her bag. She drapes one over Aunt Kate and the other one over herself.
Franny: I made these for us.
Aunt Kate: Oh, Franny! (her eyes shining ) Your mother’s spirit lives on in you.
National Photo Company/Library of Congress/Corbis/VCG via Getty Images
VICTORY AT LAST
The 19th Amendment to the Constitution extended the vote to women. But the struggle for voting equality wasn’t over. For more, check out the timeline below.
Ready to vote?
In just a few years, you will turn 18 and get to vote for the first time. Why is voting important?
EPILOGUE
SD2: Hazel, Lucy, Maud, Franny, and Aunt Kate speak to the audience.
Hazel: Our unlawful imprisonment in the workhouse got America’s attention.
Lucy: Thousands more people joined our cause.
Maud: And we kept working in the years to come.
Franny: The war ended in 1918, and my dad came home safe. When I told him about me and Mother, that we were suffragists, he wasn’t angry.
Aunt Kate (putting her arm around Franny): He was proud.
Franny: And my dad and I were together that wonderful day in August 1920 when it became the law—at last—that women could vote.
SD3: The women join hands and bow as the lights fade.
How Racism Divided the Suffrage Movement
Bettmann Archive/Getty Images
The women’s parade on March 3, 1913, was the largest women’s protest up to that point in American history.
Many black women faced intense discrimination within the suffrage movement. They were often alienated and ignored.
The Granger Collection
Ida B. Wells
On March 3, 1913, a historic women’s parade took place in Washington, D.C. Some 8,000 suffragists from across the U.S. came to march in it. But then something shameful happened. Before it started, the white parade organizers told the black women to go to the back of the parade. Ida B. Wells, a prominent civil rights leader from Chicago, ignored the order, recognizing it for what it was: racist and wrong. She defiantly marched with other women from her state of Illinois. Two white women walked in step with her in a show of support.
As a result of ongoing racism within the women’s movement, black women formed their own organizations to ensure that their communities were represented in the fight for the vote. Groups like the National Association of Colored Women’s Clubs, which Wells helped to form, worked tirelessly for the justice and rights that all women deserved.
This play was originally published in the March 2020 issue.
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Step-by-Step Lesson Plan
Close Reading, Critical Thinking, Skill Building
1. PREPARING TO READ
2. READING AND DISCUSSING
3. SKILL BUILDING
For Struggling Readers
In a well-organized paragraph, describe how the suffragists in the play worked to get women the right to vote.
For Advanced Readers
In a well-organized essay, explain how suffragists crusaded for the right to vote. Support your answer with information from the play, informational text, timeline at Scope Online, and another source of your choosing.
For Biographers
Write an article about a famous suffragist or women’s rights advocate to be published in a class edition of The Suffragist newspaper.
For Journalists
Research an issue related to women’s ongoing struggle for equality—within education, the workplace, military service, etc. Why does this inequality exist? How are people standing up to it? Present your findings in a podcast or essay.
Literature Connection: Other texts about women’s struggle for equality
Almost Astronauts: 13 Women Who Dared to Dream
by Tonya Lee Stone (nonfiction)
The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate
by Jaqueline Kelly (novel)
“The Struggle For Human Rights”
by Eleanor Roosevelt (speech)
Recommended pairings from the Archives:
Text-to-Speech