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Newly elected Senator John Curtis made these comments during the unveiling of the Martha Hughes Cannon statue at the United States Capitol on Wednesday, December 11.

The remarkable Welsh-American story of Martha Hughes Cannon resonates deeply in Utah history—and personally within my family. My wife, Sue, comes from the Martha Hughes Cannon family line – and I can feel her spirit, strength and gifts in my children and grandchildren.

Her list of accomplishments is long, ranging from public health and education to her original glass ceiling-shattering election to the Utah Senate. Yet it is her principles that have resonated longest and loudest over the years, inspiring women and men to live by the principles they claim to believe in and the possibilities that freedom offers.

Martha’s inspiring principles included being faith-filled and fearless, relentless and resilient, and laser-focused on achieving the unimaginable. To her, impossible was nothing. At a time when few women had a voice and even fewer used it, Martha Hughes Cannon’s principles drove her to stand up, speak out, and even stand alone to lead. She also recognized the need to rally behind key allies and key alliances for her cause. Martha has inspired millions of women to recognize their principles and power, find their voices, and then elevate them to transform communities, states, and nations.

Principles first learned in Wales and tested on the American frontier were ultimately lived out as a leader in Utah. She was an authentic influencer more than 100 years before social media even existed, and from her new position on a pedestal in the United States Capitol, she continues to call us all to the fearless, faithful, and resilient pursuit of all that we envision. can imagine and achieve – together.

One of Martha’s superpowers was found in the principles of allies and alliances. I actually believe these are the essential leadership principles for the 21st century. Martha Hughes Cannon lived and used it in the late 19th century. A defining moment in Utah history and Martha’s legacy occurred in the 1895 debate over the inclusion of women’s suffrage in the Utah state constitution. As is always the case, the day the journey began was not the day the journey began. Martha had spent years shaping the conversation about equality, forging and nurturing allies and alliances that proved prophetic and essential to the cause.

In 1895, women’s suffrage was one of the most controversial issues facing the country. Nationally, the movement met with significant resistance. Suffragists made progress, but opposition was widespread, especially in the eastern and southern states. Many states avoided the divisive issue altogether.

However, Utah led the way, demonstrating what coalition building looks like and how principled people work together.

For decades, Utah women had worked tirelessly and relentlessly to build coalitions in support of equal suffrage with the women and men of the area. Martha Hughes Cannon and an army of suffragists had influenced the debate, not by demonizing opponents, bashing skeptics, or bashing men, but by enlisting allies and building strategic alliances based on democratic principles and shared moral values.

Ironically, it was the men of Utah who had the ultimate power to make equal suffrage a reality. The 1895 Utah Constitutional Convention is an extraordinary example of the critical role of allies and alliances in promoting progress toward an equal and prosperous society. Having connected and agreed upon the important principles long before the convention, the women had formed a coalition that created momentum and opportunity while inspiring and empowering the men who would actually cast the votes.

The women of Utah were compelling and compelling in their crusade, AND the men who shared their vision and determination became equally yoked and indispensable partners in the effort. Because of the way these extraordinary women built bridges, linked and locked weapons, and developed a principle-based working coalition, men in positions of power chose to be allies for women’s equality despite the risks and resistance that existed in 1895.

When Utah’s all-male convention of delegates met to draft the Utah Constitution, granting women the right to vote was far from a foregone conclusion. During the Constitutional Convention there was passionate debate on both sides.

Some delegates, products of their time, doubted the value of women’s suffrage. Other delegates simply urged caution. They were not necessarily against women’s suffrage, but they were concerned that including it in the Constitution could jeopardize Utah’s statehood. Utah had already been denied statehood six times. They did not consider it wise to address such a controversial issue in their seventh attempt at statehood. And they argued passionately against its inclusion.

But there were other delegates, important allies, who fully shared the suffragists’ vision for a society in which women and men contributed as equal partners. Their alliance was not passive; it was principled. They understood what was needed of them: action, advocacy and a willingness to challenge the status quo. These men chose to join the women of Utah because they recognized three things: 1) women had as much right to freedom and self-government as men; 2) the progress of one group elevates us all; and 3) Utah had a responsibility to lead the way.

Orson F. Whitney convincingly stated that “women’s right to vote is not a concession. It is an inherent right, an eternal truth.”

Franklin D. Richards convinced his fellow delegates that the work being done in Utah on behalf of women would be “the purest and brightest ray of Utah’s glorious star, beckoning its sister states onward and upward to the higher plane of civilization and the fuller degree of civil consciousness.” and religious freedom.”

These were not men speaking on behalf of women. This was the embodiment of “In unity there is strength” – voices of women and men united in the principles of equality and opportunity for all.

Ultimately, Utah’s leaders were courageous. They saw the power of aligning our laws with our values. They felt called to lead the world to a better path: the Utah Way.

By the time the convention voted, the prevailing attitude among the delegates was as bold and daring as their pioneering vision of what the West would become: “We will go into the Union with our women, or not at all.”

The state constitution included women’s suffrage, making Utah the third state in the country to include women’s suffrage in its constitution. It was a stunning move with the state at stake. The alliance created courage for the right solution to a difficult decision and contributed to Utah’s legacy of leadership.

That vote not only secured a fundamental right for half of Utah’s population, but also put fuel on the flames of women’s equality across the country and around the world. That decision reflected our state’s enduring values: that we rise higher when we lift everyone up, and that true progress comes from pioneering values ​​like courage. That decision set forces in motion to show what happens when the barriers to opportunity are removed.

Utah women have many firsts. A short list includes:

• Seraph Young became the first woman to cast a vote under an equal suffrage law in February 1870.
• Lucy A. Clark became the first woman in the country to vote as a delegate and deliver a speech at the Republican National Convention in 1908.
• Margaret Zane Witcher became the first woman in the country to serve as an elector in the 1912 Presidential Electoral College.

Today we honor that legacy, not only by celebrating it, but by asking each of us how we can emulate it.

How can we better try to align our laws with our values?

How can we support allies and strengthen alliances to create a world where everyone truly has an equal opportunity to rise?

Today, being an ally means listening, understanding, and amplifying not just women’s voices, but every voice, and using our influence to create opportunities for all. It means addressing disparities in representation through education, mentoring, encouraging civic engagement and supporting women in elected office, communities and organizations. It means recognizing, as Orson Whitney and Franklin Richards did, that families, communities and societies thrive when women engage as truly equal partners and decision-makers.

The story of the 1895 Constitutional Convention teaches us that allyship is about using positions of influence to make the world a better place by empowering others to use their unique skills to contribute to the common good.

Today, as we celebrate the legacy of Martha Hughes Cannon, let us recommit to the pioneering values ​​that she and the Utahns of her day believed and lived. As we strive for a more perfect union, let us commit to being allies and building the alliances that history called for then—and on which America’s future depends now—in our families, in our workplaces, in our communities, at the ballot box and in the halls of power.

Thank you.