{
  "schema": "tga.work.v1",
  "identifier": "dresden:vol-9:suffrage-address",
  "slug": "suffrage-address",
  "title": "Suffrage Address",
  "subtitle": "Washington, D.C., January 24, 1880.",
  "excerpt": "Delivered at a suffrage meeting in Washington, D.C. — Ingersoll's case that a community which denies any adult citizen a vote is, by that fact alone, a tyranny.",
  "year": 1880,
  "volume": 9,
  "category": "Political",
  "author": {
    "name": "Robert G. Ingersoll",
    "wikidata": "Q360326",
    "viaf": "44331023"
  },
  "isPartOf": {
    "title": "The Works of Robert G. Ingersoll",
    "edition": "Dresden Edition",
    "publisher": "C. P. Farrell",
    "year": 1900
  },
  "license": "https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/",
  "url": "https://thegreatagnostic.com/works/suffrage-address/",
  "wordCount": 3513,
  "body": "• This address was delivered at a Suffrage Meeting in\n    Washington, D. C., January 24,1880\n\n1880.\n\nLADIES and Gentlemen: I believe the people to be the only rightful\nsource of political power, and that any community, no matter where, in\nwhich any citizen is not allowed to have his voice in the making of\nthe laws he must obey, that community is a tyranny. It is a matter of\nastonishment to me that a meeting like this is necessary in the Capital\nof the United States. If the citizens of the District of Columbia are\nnot permitted to vote, if they are not allowed to govern themselves,\nand if there is no sound reason why they are not allowed to govern\nthemselves, then the American idea of government is a failure. I do not\nbelieve that only the rich should vote, or that only the whites should\nvote, or that only the blacks should vote. I do not believe that\nright depends upon wealth, upon education, or upon color. It depends\nabsolutely upon humanity. I have the right to vote because I am a man,\nbecause I am an American citizen, and that right I should and am willing\nto share equally with every human being. There has been a great deal\nsaid in this country of late in regard to giving the right of suffrage\nto women. So far as I am concerned I am willing that every woman in the\nnation who desires that privilege and honor shall vote. If any woman\nwants to vote I am too much of a gentleman to say she shall not. She\ngets her right, if she has it, from precisely the same source that I get\nmine, and there are many questions upon which I would deem it desirable\nthat women should vote, especially upon the question of peace or war.\nIf a woman has a child to be offered upon the altar of that Moloch, a\nhusband liable to be drafted, and who loves a heart that can be entered\nby the iron arrow of death, she surely has as much right to vote for\npeace as some thrice-besotted sot who reels to the ballot-box and\ndeposits a vote for war. I believe, and always have, that there is\nonly one objection to a woman voting, and that is, the men are not\nsufficiently civilized for her to associate with them, and for several\nyears I have been doing what little I can to civilize them. The only\nquestion before this meeting, as I understand it, is, Shall the people\nof this District manage their own affairs—whether they shall vote their\nown taxes and select their own officers who are to execute the laws they\nmake? and for one, I say there is no human being with ingenuity enough\nto frame an argument against this question. It is all very well to say\nthat Congress will do this, but Congress has a great deal to do\nbesides. There is enough before that body coming from all the States and\nTerritories of the Union, and the numberless questions arising in the\nconduct of the General Government. I am opposed to a government where\nthe few govern the many. I am opposed to a government that depends upon\nsuppers, and upon flattery; upon crooking the hinges of the knee; upon\nfavors, upon subterfuges. We want to be manly men in this District. We\nmust direct and control our own affairs, and if we are not capable of\ndoing it, there is no part of the Union where they are capable. It is\nsaid there is a vast amount of ignorance here. That is true; but that\nis also true of every section of the United States. There is too much\nignorance and there will continue to be until the people become great\nenough, generous enough, and splendid enough to see that no child shall\ngrow up in their midst without a good, common-school education. The\npeople of this District are capable of managing their educational\naffairs if they are allowed to do so. The fact is, a man now living in\nthe District lives under a perpetual flag of truce. He is nobody. He\ncounts for nothing. He is not noticed except as a suppliant. Nothing as\na citizen. That day should pass away. It will be a perpetual education\nfor this people to govern themselves, and until they do they cannot\nbe manly men. They say, though, that there is a vast rabble here. Very\nwell. Make your election laws so as to exclude the vast rabble. Let it\nbe understood that no man shall vote who has not lived here at least one\nyear.\n\nLet your registration laws prohibit any man from voting unless he has\nbeen registered at least six months. We do not want to be governed by\npeople who have no abode here—who are political Bedouins of the desert.\nWe want to be governed by people who live with us—who live somewhere\namong us, and whom somebody knows, and if a law is properly framed there\nwill be no trouble about self-government in the District of Columbia.\nLet the experiment be tried here of a perfect, complete and honest\nregistration; let every man, no matter who he is or where he comes from,\nvote only by strict compliance with a good registry law. We can have a\nfair election, and wherever there is a fair election there will be\ngood government. Our Government depends for its stability upon honest\nelections. The great principle underlying our system of government is\nthat the people have the virtue and the patriotism to govern themselves.\nThat is the foundation stone, the corner and the base of our edifice,\nand upon it our Government is on trial to-day. And until a man is\nconsidered infamous who casts an illegal vote, our Government will not\nbe safe. Whoever casts an illegal vote knowingly is a traitor to the\nprinciple upon which our Government is founded. And whoever deprives a\ncitizen of his right to vote is also a traitor to our Government. When\nthese things are understood; when the finger of public scorn shall be\npointed at every man who votes illegally, or unlawfully prevents an\nhonest vote, then you will have a splendid Government. It is humiliating\nfor one hundred and seventy-five thousand people to depend simply upon\nthe right of petition. The few will disregard the petition of the many.\n\nI have not one word to say against the officers of the District. Not a\nword. But let them do as well as they can; that is no justification. It\nis no justification of a monarchy that the king is a good man; it is no\njustification of a tyranny that the despot does justice. There may come\nanother who will do injustice; and a free people like ours should not be\nsatisfied to be governed by strangers. They would better have bad men\nof their own choosing than to have good men forced upon them. You\nhave property here, and you have a right to protect it, and a right to\nimprove it. You have life and liberty and the right to protect it. You\nhave a right to say what money shall be assessed and collected and paid\nfor that protection. You have laws and you have a right to have them\nexecuted by officers of your own selection, and by nobody else. In my\njudgment, all that is necessary to have these things done is to have the\nsubject properly laid before Congress, and let that body thoroughly\nand perfectly understand the situation. There is no member there,\nwho rightly understanding our wishes, will dare continue this\ndisfranchisement of the people. We have the same right to vote that\ntheir constituents have, precisely—no more and no less.\n\nThis District ought to have one representative in Congress, a\nrepresentative with a right to speak—not a tongueless dummy. The idea\nof electing a delegate who has simply the privilege of standing around!\nWe ought to have a representative who has not only the right to\ntalk, but who will talk. This District has the right to a vote in the\ncommittees of Congress, and not simply the privilege of receiving a\nlittle advice. And more than that, this District ought to have at least\none electoral vote in a selection of a President of the United States.\nA smaller population than yours is represented not only in Congress, but\nin the Electoral College. If it is necessary to amend the Constitution\nto secure these rights let us try and have it amended; and when\nthat question is put to the people of the whole country they will be\nprecisely as willing that the people of the District of Columbia shall\nhave an equal voice as that they themselves should have a voice.\n\nLet us stop at no half-way ground, but claim, and keep claiming all\nour rights until somebody says we shall have them. And let me tell you\nanother thing: Once have the right of self-government recognized here,\nhave a delegate in Congress, and an electoral vote for President,\nand thousands will be willing to come here and become citizens of\nthe District. As it is, the moment a man settles here his American\ncitizenship falls from him like dead leaves from a tree. From that\nmoment he is nobody. Every American citizen wants a little political\npower—wants to cast his vote for the rulers of the nation. He wants to\nhave something to say about the laws he has to obey, and they are not\nwilling to come here and disfranchise themselves. The moment it is known\nthat a man is from the District he has no influence, and no one cares\nwhat his political opinions may be. Now, let us have it so that we can\nvote and be on an equality with the rest of the voters of the United\nStates. This Government was founded upon the idea that the only\nsource of power is the people. Let us show at the Capital that we have\nconfidence in that principle; that every man should have a vote and\nvoice in the South, in the North, everywhere, no matter how low his\ncondition, no matter that he was a slave, no matter what his color is,\nor whether he can read or write, he is clothed with the right to\nname those who make the laws he is to obey. While the lowest and most\ndegraded in every State in this Union have that right, the best and most\nintelligent in the District have not that right. It will not do. There\nis no sense in it—there is no justice in it—nothing American in it.\nIf this were the case in some of the capitals of Europe we would not be\nsurprised; but here in the United States, where we have so much to say\nabout the right of self-government, that two hundred thousand people\nshould not have the right to say who shall make, and who shall execute\nthe laws is at least an anomaly and a contradiction of our theory of\ngovernment, and for one, I propose to do what little I can to correct\nit. It has been said that you had once here the right of self-government.\nIf I understand it, the right you had was to elect somebody to some\noffice, and all the other officers were appointed. You had no control\nover your Legislature; you had very little control over your other\nofficers, and the people of the District were held responsible for what\nwas actually done by the appointing power. We want no appointing power.\nIf it is necessary to have a police magistrate, I say the people are\ncompetent to elect that magistrate; and if he is not a good man they\nare qualified to select another in his place. You ought to elect your\njudges. I do not want the office of the Judiciary so far from the people\nthat it may feel entirely independent. I want every officer in this\nDistrict held-accountable to the people, and, unless he discharges his\nduties faithfully, the people will put him out, and select another in\nhis stead.\n\nI want it understood that no American citizen can be forced to pay\na dollar in a State or in the district where he lives who is not\nrepresented, and where he has not the right to vote. It is all tyranny,\nand all infamous. The people of the United States wonder to-day that you\nhave submitted to this outrage as long as you have.\n\nNeither do I believe that only the rich should have the right to vote;\nthat only they should govern; or that only the educated should govern.\nI have noticed among educated men many who did not know enough to\ngovern themselves. I have known many wealthy men who did not believe\nin liberty, in giving the people the same rights they claimed for\nthemselves. I believe in that government where the ballot of Lazarus\ncounts as much as the vote of Dives. Let the rich, let the educated,\ngovern the people by moral suasion and by example and by kindness, and\nnot by brute force. And in a community like this, where the avenues to\ndistinction are open alike to all, there will be many more reasons for\nacting like men. When you can hold any position, when every citizen can\nhave conferred upon him honor and responsibility, there is some stimulus\nto be a man. But in a community where but the few are clothed with power\nby appointment, no incentive exists among the people. If the avenues to\ndistinction and honor are open to all, such a government is beneficial\non every hand, and the poorest man in the community may say to himself,\n\"If I pursue the right course the very highest place is open to me.\" And\nthe poorest man, with his little tow-headed boy on his knee, can say,\n\"John, all the avenues are open to you; although I am poor, you may be\nrich, and while I am obscure, you may become distinguished.\"\n\nThat idea sweetens every hour of toil and renders holy every drop of\nsweat that rolls down the face of labor. I hate tyranny in every form.\nI despise it, and I execrate a tyrant wherever he may be, and in every\ncountry where the people are struggling for the right of self-government\nI sympathize with them in their struggle. Wherever the sword of\nrebellion is drawn in favor of human rights I am a rebel. I sympathize\nwith all the people in Europe who are endeavoring to push kings from\nthrones and struggling for the right to govern themselves. America ought\nto send greeting to every part of the world where such a struggle is\npending, and we of the District of Columbia ought to be able to join\nin the greeting, but we never shall be until we have the right of\nself-government ourselves. No man who is a good citizen can have any\nobjection to self-government here. No man can be opposed to it who\nbelieves that our people have enough wisdom, enough virtue, enough\npatriotism to govern themselves. The man who doubts the right of the\npeople to govern themselves casts a little doubt upon the question,\nsimply because he is not man enough himself to believe in liberty. I\nwould trust the poor of this country with our liberties as soon as I\nwould the rich. I will trust the huts and hovels, just as soon as I will\nthe mansions and palaces. I will trust those who work by the day in the\nstreet as soon as I will the bankers of the United States. I will trust\nthe ignorant—even the ignorant. Why? Because they want education, and\nno people in this country are so anxious to have their children educated\nas those who are not educated themselves. I will trust the ignorant with\nthe liberties of this country quicker than I would some of the educated\nwho doubt the principles upon which our Government is founded. But\nlet the intelligent do what they can to instruct the ignorant. Let the\nwealthy do what they can to give the blessings of liberty to the poor,\nand then this Government will remain forever. The time is passing away\nwhen any man of genius can be respected who will not use that genius\nin elevating his fellow-man. The time is passing away when men, however\nwealthy, can be respected unless they use their millions for the\nelevation of mankind. The time is coming when no man will be called an\nhonest man who is not willing to give to every other man, be he white or\nblack, every right that he asks for himself.\n\nFor my part, I am willing to live under a government where all govern,\nand am not willing to live under any other. I am willing to live where\nI am on an equality with other men, where they have precisely my rights,\nand no more; and I despise any government that is not based upon this\nprinciple of human equality. Now, let us go just for that one\nthing, that we have the same right as any other people in the\nUnited States—that is, to govern this District ourselves. Let us be\nrepresented in the lawmaking power, and let us advocate a change in the\nfundamental law so that the people of this District shall be entitled\nto one vote as to who shall be President of the United States. And when\nthat is done and our people are clothed with the panoply of citizenship,\nyou will find this District growing not to two hundred thousand, but\nin a little while one million of people will live here. Now, for one, I\nhave not the slightest feeling against members of Congress for what\nhas been done. I believe when this matter is laid before them fully and\nproperly you will find few men in that august body who will vote against\nthe proposition. They have had trouble enough. They do not understand\nour affairs. They never did, never will, never can. No one who does not\nlive here will. The public interests are so many and so conflicting, and\ntouch the sides of so many, that the people must attend to this matter\nthemselves. They know when they want a market, a judge, or a collector\nof taxes, and nobody else does and nobody else has a right to.\n\nAnd instead of going up to Congress and standing around some\ncommittee-room with a long petition in your hands, begging somebody to\nwait just one moment, it will be far better that you should go to the\npolls and elect your representative, who can attend to your interests in\nCongress. But above all things, I want to warn you, charge you, beseech\nyou, that in any legislation upon this subject you must secure a\nregistration law that will prevent the casting of an illegal vote.\nDo this before it is known whether the District is Republican or\nDemocratic. I do not care. No matter how much of a Republican I am,\nabsolutely, I would rather be governed by Democrats who live here than\nby Republicans who do not. And now, while it is not known whether this\nis a Democratic or Republican community, let us get up a registration\nthat no one can violate; because the moment you have an election, and\nit is ascertained to be either Democratic or Republican, the victorious\nparty may be opposed to any registration or any legislation that will\nput in jeopardy their power. I have lived long enough to be satisfied\nthat any State in this Union, no matter whether Democratic or\nRepublican, will be safe as long as the people have the right to vote,\nand to see that the ballots will be counted. This country is now upon\ntrial. In nearly every State in this Union there is liable to happen\njust the same thing that only the other day happened in Maine.\n\nIn every State there can be two legislatures, one in the State-house and\nthe other on the fence. Let us in this District so guard the right\nto vote and the counting of the ballots, that we shall know after the\nelection who has been elected and know with certainty the men who have\nbeen elected by the legal voters of the District.\n\nIt becomes us all, whether Republicans or Democrats, to unite in\nsecuring such a law. Let us act together, Democrats and Republicans,\nblack and white, rich and poor, educated and ignorant—let us all unite\nupon the principle that we have the right to govern ourselves. Then\nit will make no difference whether the District of Columbia shall be\nDemocratic or Republican, provided it is the will of a legal majority of\nher people.\n\nLadies and gentlemen, I thank you.\n"
}