In “Chap­ter Nine: Inez Mil­hol­land,” the nar­ra­tive revolves around the vibrant per­son­al­i­ty of Inez Mil­hol­land, a young woman of strik­ing beau­ty and intel­li­gence, who emerged as a promi­nent fig­ure in the women’s suf­frage move­ment in ear­ly 20th-cen­tu­ry Amer­i­ca. As the chap­ter unfolds in New York in 1910, Inez is depict­ed as an auda­cious and mod­ern woman who defied the tra­di­tion­al roles of fem­i­nin­i­ty shaped by the Gild­ed Age’s cult of domes­tic­i­ty. Edu­cat­ed at Vas­sar Col­lege, her ambi­tions extend­ed beyond per­son­al ful­fill­ment; she sought to engage in legal reform to advo­cate for wom­en’s rights, prison reform, and civ­il rights.

Inez’s upbring­ing in a pro­gres­sive fam­i­ly sig­nif­i­cant­ly influ­enced her con­vic­tions. Her father, John Mil­hol­land, was a co-founder of the NAACP, and he instilled in her a sense of social jus­tice. The chap­ter likens her fam­i­ly’s expe­ri­ences in Lon­don to the fic­tion­al Banks fam­i­ly from the Dis­ney clas­sic “Mary Pop­pins,” hint­ing at their pro­gres­sive and adven­tur­ous lifestyle.

Inez quick­ly became a strik­ing fig­ure in the suf­frage move­ment, not just due to her beau­ty but because of her pas­sion­ate advo­ca­cy. Her pres­ence at events drew media atten­tion, and she often used her charm to fur­ther the cause of wom­en’s rights. How­ev­er, this move­ment often exhib­it­ed racial exclu­sion, par­tic­u­lar­ly towards Black women, high­light­ing a trou­bling dynam­ic in the suf­frage cam­paign. Some white suf­frag­ists pri­or­i­tized their desires for vot­ing rights over ally­ship with Black women, result­ing in sys­temic mar­gin­al­iza­tion.

The chap­ter cul­mi­nates in the after­math of the infa­mous 1913 suf­frage parade, where Inez led a throng of pro­test­ers who faced vehe­ment aggres­sion from onlook­ers. Despite the chaos and vio­lence that erupt­ed, Inez’s deter­mi­na­tion remained unshak­en, exem­pli­fy­ing the ongo­ing strug­gles women faced in demand­ing equal­i­ty. The chap­ter empha­sizes her endur­ing lega­cy and the sac­ri­fices made by count­less suf­frag­ists, includ­ing the painful tri­als ahead for Inez as she devot­ed her­self entire­ly to the cause.