Social Scene

Finland Hosts U.S. Suffragists

By Mary Bird • March 18, 2013 0 1138

President and CEO of the National Women’s History Museum Joan Bradley Wages, Ambassador of Finland Ritva Koukku-Ronde | Mary Bird

Placard bearing stern “suffragists” greeted guests to the Embassy of Finland on March 1 where Ambassador Ritva Koukku-Ronde and Joan Bradley Wages, president and CEO of the National Women’ History Museum, hosted a reception for the Suffrage Centennial Celebration. The evening was part of a weekend honoring U.S women who made history by marching in 1913 for voting rights ultimately obtained with passage of the Nineteenth Amendment in 1920. The ambassador spoke of her country’s stellar track record in promoting gender equality. In 1906, the women of Finland gained full political rights and today constitute 50 percent of the Finnish diplomatic corps.