[Congressional Bills 109th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 695 Introduced in House (IH)]







109th CONGRESS
  2d Session
H. RES. 695

        Honoring the life and accomplishments of Betty Friedan.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           February 16, 2006

 Ms. Solis (for herself, Mrs. Capps, Mrs. Maloney, Ms. Jackson-Lee of 
  Texas, Ms. Lee, Mr. Nadler, Ms. Millender-McDonald, Ms. McCollum of 
   Minnesota, Ms. Waters, Mr. Grijalva, Mr. Evans, Ms. DeLauro, Ms. 
Baldwin, Mr. Farr, Ms. Pelosi, Ms. Slaughter, Mr. McDermott, Mrs. Jones 
of Ohio, and Ms. Schakowsky) submitted the following resolution; which 
           was referred to the Committee on Government Reform

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
        Honoring the life and accomplishments of Betty Friedan.

Whereas Betty Friedan was born to Harry and Miriam Goldstein on February 4, 
        1921, in Peoria, Illinois, as Bettye Naomi Goldstein, the eldest of 
        three children;
Whereas Betty Friedan graduated as valedictorian of her high school in 1938, 
        graduated summa cum laude from Smith College in 1942, and completed 
        graduate work in psychology at the University of California, Berkeley;
Whereas Betty Friedan won a second fellowship to study for her doctoral degree 
        at the University of California at Berkley, an honor that had never 
        previously been awarded to a psychologist or a woman;
Whereas Betty Friedan began a study in 1957 at the 15th reunion of her 
        graduating class from Smith College about the lives of women in the 
        post-World War II era, and that study eventually became the popular, 
        groundbreaking nonfiction book published in 1963, ``The Feminine 
        Mystique'';
Whereas Betty Friedan helped launch the modern women's rights movement by 
        identifying ``the problem that has no name'' with the publication of 
        ``The Feminine Mystique'', which is widely regarded as one of the most 
        influential nonfiction books of the 20th century, had sold more than 
        3,000,000 copies by the year 2000, and has been translated into many 
        languages;
Whereas Betty Friedan and 27 other women and men founded the National 
        Organization of Women (NOW) in June 1966, a highly influential 
        organization promoting equality for women that grew into the largest 
        feminist organization in the United States;
Whereas Betty Friedan was elected NOW's first president in 1966, and served in 
        that role until 1970, and coauthored, with Dr. Pauli Murray, NOW's 
        original Statement of Purpose, which began, ``The purpose of NOW is to 
        take action to bring women into full participation in the mainstream of 
        American society now, exercising all the privileges and responsibilities 
        thereof in truly equal partnership with men.'';
Whereas Betty Friedan, during her tenure as president of NOW, encouraged the 
        Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) to enforce laws 
        prohibiting sex discrimination in the workplace and to ban help wanted 
        advertisements that were segregated by sex;
Whereas Betty Friedan, during her tenure as president of NOW, encouraged 
        President Lyndon Johnson in 1967 to sign Executive Order 11375 to bar 
        gender discrimination in Federal employment and in employment by Federal 
        contractors and subcontractors; this Executive Order 11375 expanded the 
        scope of Executive Order 11246, which was signed in 1965 and barred 
        discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, or national 
        origin;
Whereas Betty Friedan, during her tenure as president of NOW, worked towards the 
        elimination of sex discrimination in the airline industry, in which 
        prior to 1968, almost all stewardesses were women, and were usually 
        fired when they married or reached 32;
Whereas Betty Friedan helped lead the NOW Women's Strike for Equality on August 
        26, 1970, in New York City in which hundreds of thousands of women and 
        some men marched on the 50th anniversary of women earning the right to 
        vote with the ratification of the 19th Amendment;
Whereas Betty Friedan helped establish the National Association for the Repeal 
        of Abortion Laws in 1969, now known as NARAL Pro-Choice America, a 
        leading national advocacy group dedicated to protecting the right to 
        privacy and reproductive freedom;
Whereas Betty Friedan, with Congresswoman Bella Abzug and Gloria Steinem, helped 
        establish the National Women's Political Caucus in 1971, a group 
        dedicated to increasing women's participation in the political process 
        and promoting pro-choice women candidates for elected and appointed 
        offices at all levels of government regardless of party affiliation;
Whereas Betty Friedan continued to write influential books throughout her life, 
        including ``It Changed My Life: Writings on the Women's Movement'', 
        published in 1976, ``The Second Stage'', published in 1978, ``The 
        Fountain of Age'', published in 1994, ``Beyond Gender: The New Politics 
        of Work and Family'', published in 1997, ``Life So Far: A Memoir'', 
        published in 2000;
Whereas Betty Friedan contributed to the academic world as a Visiting 
        Distinguished Professor at the University of Southern California, New 
        York University, University of California at Los Angeles, George Mason 
        University, and as an Adjunct Scholar at the Woodrow Wilson 
        International Center for Scholars; and most recently, she served as 
        Distinguished Visiting Professor at Cornell University, School of 
        Industrial and Labor Relations and Director of the New Paradigm Program 
        at the Institute for Women and Work;
Whereas Betty Friedan advocated on behalf of women as well as the elderly, 
        children and working families throughout her life;
Whereas Betty Friedan helped change the way women and men thought about gender 
        roles at a time of important political and social change in the United 
        States;
Whereas Betty Friedan helped give a voice to thousands of women and helped them 
        realize their immense potential to contribute to the business, 
        educational and political realms, as well as family life;
Whereas Betty Friedan helped launch the women's rights movement that left an 
        enduring mark on many of the advancements toward gender equality in the 
        last 50 years, including pay equity, child care for working women, 
        increasing numbers of women entering the workforce and protecting 
        reproductive choice, and that the work towards equality must continue; 
        and
Whereas Betty Friedan died on February 4, 2006, at the age of 85, in Washington, 
        DC: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the House of Representatives recognizes and honors 
the work and contributions of Betty Friedan to the improvement of the 
status of women and women's lives in the United States and around the 
world.
                                 <all>