Earlier today, the London School of Economics and Political Science held an event to celebrate the 100 year anniversary of women’s suffrage in England. Distinguished speakers at the event included Brenda Hale, Shami Chakrabarti, and Nicola Lacey who collectively covered how the introduction of women voting changed democracy for the better. Those who actually attended today’s event in London also had a chance to view some key historical documents from LSE’s women’s library. The summary of the event from LSE:

On February 6th 1918, with the coming into force of the Representation of the People Act, women were by law first given the vote in this country. Even though this foundational right only applied to a restricted category of women initially, the dam had been breached and the universal franchise would soon follow. 100 years on, to the very day, LSE Law will be marking this constitutional watershed.

Some of the participants in the video:

• Shami Chakrabarti was formerly director of the human rights group Liberty, and is now the Shadow Attorney General for England and Wales. She is a Visiting Professor at LSE Law.
• Brenda Hale is an English judge and is the current President of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom. She is the first woman to serve in the role, and she is one of only two women to have ever been appointed to the Supreme Court (alongside Lady Black).
• Nicola Lacey is School Professor of Law, Gender and Social Policy at LSE.
• Jeremy Horder is Head of the Law Department and Professor of Criminal Law at LSE.

You can listen to a podcast of this event available for download at this link: 100 Years of Votes for Women: an LSE Law celebration. The event video is about 90 minutes. Take a look: