Alice Paul

Alice Paul

A hero can be anyone. Heroes don’t have to be extra strong, have superpowers, or know how to fly. They just have to be helpful, respectful, kind, and brave. Think about everything you have today. I bet many heroes in history got you here. One of those people is Alice Paul: a social reformer, women rights activist, and lawyer.

Alice Paul was born on January 11, 1885, in Moorestown, New Jersey. Influenced by her Quaker family, she studied at Swarthmore College. Alice ran a successful campaign for women's suffrage. Later, Paul moved to Britain to helped the women's suffrage movement, and worked at the NAWSA (The National American Women Suffrage Association) to fight for women’s right to vote. She chose starvation as a strike method. Although she was sent to jail many times, Paul never stopped trying to fight for women’s rights. At last, her efforts helped. In the 20th century, the government finally gave women the right to vote. Alice Paul kept fighting for more rights for women until a stroke stopped her in 1974. She died three years later, on April 9, 1977.

I consider Alice to be a hero because she helped fight for women’s rights. Because of her, I will be able to vote. I would not want to live in a world where women are treated as second class people. In her fight for rights, she showed bravery, kindness, and respectfulness.

Alice Paul is my personal hero. She is not Superman, but she has saved my world.