[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 173 Introduced in House (IH)]
<DOC>
116th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. RES. 173
Recognizing the heritage, culture, and contributions of American
Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian women in the United States.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
March 5, 2019
Ms. Haaland (for herself, Ms. Davids of Kansas, Mr. Cole, Mrs. Carolyn
B. Maloney of New York, Mr. Case, Mr. Gallego, Mr. Heck, Ms. Gabbard,
Mr. Larsen of Washington, Ms. McCollum, Ms. Lee of California, Ms.
Speier, Mr. O'Halleran, Ms. Schakowsky, Ms. Moore, Mr. Green of Texas,
Mr. Lujan, Mr. Grijalva, Mr. Young, and Mr. Correa) submitted the
following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Natural
Resources
_______________________________________________________________________
RESOLUTION
Recognizing the heritage, culture, and contributions of American
Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian women in the United States.
Whereas the United States celebrates National Women's History Month every March
to recognize and honor the achievements of women throughout the history
of the United States;
Whereas American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian women have helped
shape the history of the United States since before its inception;
Whereas drawing on many Tribes and Native Nations' matriarchal practices,
American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian women played an
important role in influencing early suffragettes in their advocacy,
ultimately leading to the passage of the 19th Amendment granting women
the right to vote;
Whereas American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian women have broken
glass ceilings in the fields of science, technology, and engineering,
including--
(1) Mary Golda Ross (Cherokee Nation), who was the first female
engineer in the history of Lockheed Corporation, worked on the Agena Rocket
program and other interplanetary space travel as an aerospace engineer and
was recently honored on a special $1 United States coin;
(2) Floy Agnes Lee (Santa Clara Pueblo), who worked on the Manhattan
Project during World War II and pioneered research on radiation biology and
cancer; and
(3) Isabella Kauakea Yau Yung Aiona Abbott (Native Hawaiian), who was
the first woman on the biological sciences faculty at Stanford University,
and was awarded the Gilbert Morgan Smith medal from the National Academy of
Sciences in 1997;
Whereas American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian women activists led
the fight for civil rights, including Elizabeth Peratrovich (Tlingit
Nation), whose advocacy led to the passage of the first
antidiscrimination law in the United States;
Whereas American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian women have worked
tirelessly for legal advances for American Indian, Alaska Native, and
Native Hawaiian people despite real barriers in the legal profession,
including--
(1) Eliza ``Lyda'' Conley (Wyandot Nation), the first Native plaintiff
to present a case before the Supreme Court in 1909;
(2) Emma Kailikapiolono Metcalf Beckley Nakuina (Native Hawaiian) who
served as the first female judge in Hawaii; and
(3) Diane Humetewa (Hopi Tribe), the first Native American woman to
serve as a Federal court judge;
Whereas American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian women have served on
their respective Tribal Councils, court judges, and leaders, including
Wilma Mankiller (Cherokee), the first woman elected to serve as
Principal Chief of the Cherokee Nation, who fought for her Tribe;
Whereas American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian women serve in the
medical profession, stretching back to Susan La Flesche Picotte (Omaha
Tribe), who was the first American Indian/Alaska Native person to earn a
medical degree in 1889;
Whereas American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian women have long
contributed to the arts and culture of the United States, including
Maria Tallchief (Osage Nation), who was the first prima ballerina of the
New York City Ballet in 1942 and later a recipient of a Lifetime
Achievement Award from the Kennedy Center;
Whereas American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian women have
accomplished notable literary achievements, including author Sarah
Winnemucca Hopkins (Northern Paiute) who wrote and published one of the
first Native American autobiographies in 1883;
Whereas American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian women have been key
to efforts of culture and language, including Esther Martinez (Ohkay
Owingeh Pueblo), who persevered to ensure the continuation of the Tewa
language and whose legacy is honored in the ``Esther Martinez Native
American Languages Preservation Act'';
Whereas American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian women have served
and continue to serve the country in the military, with over 6,000
American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian women in active
service;
Whereas there are currently 28,000 American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native
Hawaiian women veterans;
Whereas American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian women overcame
significant historical barriers to women's enlistment in the military,
including Minnie Spotted Wolf (Blackfeet Nation), the first Native
American woman in the United States Marine Corps in 1943;
Whereas American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian women struggle for
equity and are paid just 63 cents for every dollar paid to White men;
Whereas more than 4 in 5 American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian
women have experienced violence in their lifetime, and more than half of
American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian women have
experienced sexual violence; and
Whereas despite significant challenges including the chronic lack of Federal
funding in Indian Country and unequal pay, disparities in education,
unmet health care needs, and civil rights violations, American Indian,
Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian women continue to break through and
thrive: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
(1) celebrates and honors the successes of American Indian,
Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian women and the contributions
they have made and continue to make to the United States;
(2) recognizes that policy and societal changes are needed
to ensure that American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native
Hawaiian women live safely and freely and can realize their
full potential; and
(3) urges the United States Government and Congress to
uphold its trust responsibility to American Indian, Alaska
Native, and Native Hawaiian women and to all Indian Tribes.
<all>