Gertrude Weil

Inspired by Jewish teachings, Weil stood courageously at the forefront of a wide range of progressive and often controversial causes, including women's suffrage, labor reform, and civil rights. She worked tirelessly to extend political, economic, and social opportunities to those long denied them. In 1920, she became president of the North Carolina League of Women Voters, which focused on educating women on their right to vote and encouraging women to take a part in public affairs.

Weil encountered opposition to her fight to secure a secret ballot and private voting rooms. In 1922, when she arrived at the polls to vote and discovered her ballot had been marked, she subsequently tore both the ballot in question and other marked ballots to shreds. Inspired by her experience in social work she continued to push for a social welfare program and access to birth control.