ublic address. She started out as a guest lecturer speaking out against slavery. Stone was a known as a major abolitionist in the pre-civil war period. At this time, the other Womens rights leaders wondered if her abolition speaking would take away from their cause. Could she be doing more? Stone thought she could, so she decided to speak on Womens Rights during the week and on Abolition on the weekends. Stone was now charging money to hear her talk, but people were more than happy to pay. She was very controversial at this time, and many people were offended by what she had to say. There was a general idea at this time among men that people in favor of womens rights had some sort of mental problem. The thought of a woman traveling around speaking drew many people the same way a sideshow would at a circus. After the civil war, in 1868, the 14th amendment was passed. This guaranteed equal protection under the laws, but to the dismay of womens rights leaders, the original proposal was that it would only apply to men. Stone, being a little less extreme as her peers, supported the bill. Others, like Elizabeth Cady Stanton were opposed to this bill. They felt that, although it is a major gain for blacks, it was a setback for women and they wouldnt stand for it. This was the first of many splits in these female leaders. Stanton and Anthony were much more extreme than Stone, although Stone was viewed by those on the outside as extremely radical. The split in the womens rights movement gave life to two different organizations. Stone, alongside her husband Henry Blackwell, in 1869 founded the American Women Suffrage Association (AWSA). The AWSA was formed almost in protest of the National Women Suffrage Association (NWSA). The difference was not in intention, but approach. The NWSA was almost too radical for Stone. They wanted to obtain suffrage by one national amendment. The AWSA thought it more rational to try to get suff...
