Dear Diary



On August 17, 1890 in Concord, New Hampshire was
born a girl named Elizabeth Gurley Flynn. She grew up in a
poor industrial New England towns before she moved to New
York City. Elizabeth became an active person in socialist groups
and gave her first public speech at age sixteen called ¨ What
Socialism Will Do for Women?¨ As the result she was expelled
from her high school in 1907. At age sixteen she was arrested for
giving a speech on a street corner and blocking traffic but never
put in jail.

April 19, 1907

Dear Diary,
Today is an exciting day, today I will give my first public speech called “What Socialism Will Do for Women?”. I’m sweating like a pig, my mother says to stop shaking and to speak loud and to not think about the people. My father isn’t so supportive about me joining into socialist groups or giving speeches. He says they are just a waist a time and should be sowing, cleaning the house, going to school. I do all of those things I don’t know why he so mean to me if he had told me I was the best thing he had ever had. Right before I gave my speech my dad looked at me and put his head down and walked away.


April 20, 1907

Dear Diary,

My speech was wonderful everyone had applause at me and cheered, I felt butterflies in my stomach I never had that feeling in my life. This morning my father was still sleeping so I had decided to make him breakfast and give it to him in his bed. I woke my father up and told him I had brought breakfast. He said thank you then I felt a warm hand going across my face as the hand goes across my face I felt a sharp pain on my cheek. My fathers hand so so powerful that I dropped to the floor. After I had hit the floor I raise my head seeing myself on the floor as my mother is yelling at my father while my father is just staring at me. I felt warm drops falling across my face as I stand up feeling a sharp pain on my cheek. My father starts yelling at me that my speech had caused me to get expelled from Andrew High and if I kept doing speeches he will kick me out of my home. After my father had screamed at me I ran to my room as fast I could go and feel on my bedroom floor. I never seen my father that angry at me. I heard my mother yelling to my father why he had done that to me. As my mother and father kept on going with the argument I got all the letter he had written to me and burned them into ashes.


April 21, 1907

Dear Diary,

Today I went to Andrew High to pick up my personal belonging and this broke my heart to pieces. My friends ,that I grew up with as a child, would not talk to me and my principal, a long family friend, had me in his office until all students were in class because he didn't want me to brainwash other students minds. I embraced it and got out of that school like if what I have done is going to make a difference. The principal ran toward me and threaten me if I keeped on doing this he will kill me. My heart started racing, my palms started sweating, and I felt heat running through my body but I just kept showing my strength and not me weakness.
April 22, 1907

Dear Diary,

This morning my mother and I are getting ready for a street speech I am going to do.
My hands are sweating like never before, my hands are sweating more now than my first public speech. In my mind I told myself that people were going to listen and I was not going to be the one that talks to herself on the street. My mother brushed my hair with delicacy, my palms were dry and my heart had a normal pulse I felt like a baby in clouds. My mother stopped and said it was time.

April 23, 1907


Dear Diary,

I am shocked by the people that were there. At first they were a few people there and it was a great start, but all of the sudden they were hundreds of people there. I had a smile from ear to ear and when I laughed they laughed, when I frowned they frowned. My mother told me that we blocked the street, but all those feeling went away when I felt a hand on my arm. It was a police officer with other officers in back of him. My heart started racing, my palms started to sweat, and I felt my bodies heat rise. I asked the if I could help him with something and he respond that I needed to go to the police station because I was blocking traffic. They put me in the police car and we drove to the police station. When we got there they had me fill so paper, put my finger print on a piece of paper, they gave me a fine and I went home. When I got home my eyes and mouth were wide open and the only thing I would think of is the amount of people that stopped traffic to just hear me make a speech.

Epilogue:

Years past as she was making a difference but sadly died on September 5, 1964 at age 74. But even though she has left this world she still lives on in our history.