Fairfax City Hall, 10455 Armstrong Street, Fairfax, Va.
Suffragist Alice Paul is unknown by many, but independent scholar J.D. “Jill” Zahniser of Minnesota is bringing her to light for the masses. Dr. Zahniser read from her new book, “Alice Paul, Claiming Power,” at a gathering Sunday, June 22, at Fairfax City Hall in Fairfax, Va. Dr. Zahniser describes Paul as a woman who masterfully used publicity to promote women’s suffrage but kept her own personal life very private. Edith P. Mayo, Curator Emeritus of Political History at the Smithsonian Institution, says the book is the “definitive biography of (Alice) Paul during the suffrage era.”

Sponsored by the Turning Point Suffragist Memorial Association (TPSMA) and hosted by the Fairfax City Commission for Women, the event included a detailed discussion of the book that has been years in the making. Based on personal letters and an extensive interview in 1973 with Alice Paul conducted by co-author Amelia Fry, the book details how Paul went from being a mild-mannered Quaker to an outspoken advocate for women’s rights. Proceeds from the lecture and book signing will go toward the construction of the Turning Point Suffragist Memorial in Occoquan Regional Park in Lorton, VA.

It will be the nation’s first national suffragist memorial that will focus on the suffragists whose harsh treatment at the Occoquan Workhouse served as a turning point for the recognition of a woman’s right to vote. For more information about the memorial please visit the website: www.suffragistmemorial.org.