Women’s History Month Spotlight on Elizabeth Cady Stanton: Courage as a Woman’s Greatest Protection

November 12, 1815 · October 26, 1902

“The best protection any woman can have … is courage.” – Elizabeth Cady Stanton

I’ll start this particular Women’s History Month spotlight by stating that Elizabeth Cady Stanton is the muse who inspired my personal pathway towards the feminist perspective. It’s not that I didn’t have a mind and thoughts of my own from the time I can first remember noticing the way women were treated differently from their male counterparts. I had, afterall, already entered into the “traditional men’s role” of truck driving as the means to support my three children. There was no other way that I could support myself and my children on the wages offered for more “traditional women’s work” —secretarial and such. Plus, I wasn’t skilled in secretarial or office work. But I did know how to drive…. It wasn’t until I entered college that I learned about Elizabeth Cady Stanton and all she had done to get society to a place where women could even dream about being considered “equal” to men. She was my immediate muse, and I went on to study women’s issues at a formal level of studies.

Because I was a single mother, I had been forced head-first into being courageous; Whether it was my innate or learned behavior is unquestionable: I was an introvert who had to become an extrovert to survive the times and conditions. I was responsible for the protection of my three little humans, and for myself. Protection is often thought of as something external—a shield provided by laws, by society, by others. But Elizabeth Cady Stanton, a fierce leader in the women’s rights movement, understood a deeper truth: the strongest protection a woman can ever have is her own courage.

It was courage that fueled her fight for women’s suffrage when the world insisted she stay in her place. It was courage that led her to co-author the Declaration of Sentiments in 1848, demanding equality at the first Women’s Rights Convention in Seneca Falls. It was courage that made her one of the first voices to call for full voting rights for women—at a time when such an idea was considered unthinkable.

Why Courage is a Woman’s Greatest Protection

Courage is what allows a woman to speak up when she’s told to be silent.
Courage is what enables her to walk away from situations that diminish her worth.
Courage is what empowers her to demand more—from society, from relationships, from life.

Elizabeth Cady Stanton didn’t wait for permission. She didn’t wait for the world to be ready. She stood up, spoke out, and fought for the freedoms we enjoy today. Her courage was her armor, her weapon, and her legacy.

Your Call to Courage

The world still needs courageous women. Women who are unafraid to claim their space. Women who dare to disrupt. Women who refuse to settle for less.

This Women’s History Month, ask yourself:
Where in your life do you need to summon courage?
What would you do if you were fearless?
How can you honor the women before you by standing fully in your power?

Because courage isn’t just a shield—it’s a force of change. And when a woman embraces her courage, there is nothing she cannot do.

How has courage shaped your life? Share your story in the comments!