[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 26 (Thursday, March 10, 1994)]
[Senate]
[Page S]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[Congressional Record: March 10, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

 
                           KATHRYN CLARENBACH

  Mr. FEINGOLD. Mr. President, I want to take this opportunity today to 
pay tribute to the life and work of University of Wisconsin emeritus 
professor, Kathryn Clarenbach. Mrs. Clarenbach was truly an American 
and a Wisconsin treasure. She passed away at her Madison home on March 
4 after a long struggle with emphysema. She was 73. To the fight for 
women's equality she was a pioneer, an architect, a leader, and an 
inspiration to thousands. To me, Kathryn was a colleague, a friend, and 
a role model.
  She was born in Sparta, the small-town county seat of Monroe County, 
WI. She attended the University of Wisconsin, graduated with honors and 
received her Ph.D from the University of Wisconsin in 1946. A teacher 
of political science and government affairs, she inspired students at 
Olivet College in Michigan, Purdue University, Edgewood College in 
Madison, and the University of Wisconsin.
  Her academic career focused on the role of women in government and 
society. She was particularly interested in the difficulties faced by 
women when reentering the workplace after raising children. This 
interest led to her development of innovative continuing education 
programs for women through the University of Wisconsin--Extension. She 
was also interested in the feminization of poverty saying recently, 
``for women who claim to be feminist to accept this poverty, or to put 
the interests of the wealthy or of business ahead of people's interests 
is absolutely contrary to the whole notion of feminism.''

  I served with Kathryn Clarenbach on the Wisconsin Women's Council 
where we all benefited from her experience, energy, and wisdom. While a 
Wisconsin State senator I worked closely with her on a number of issues 
including divorce law, marital property reform, sexual assault 
legislation, and pay equity for women.
  But her impressive legacy in academics and Wisconsin State government 
is matched if not exceeded by her critical role as an original founder 
of the modern women's movement. Kathryn Clarenbach was the first 
chairwoman of the board for the National Organization for Women or NOW. 
In fact, for a time NOW was headquartered in the Clarenbach home on 
Eton Ridge in Madison. She was also a founding member of the National 
Women's Political Caucus and the Wisconsin Women's Network.
  She was fighting for equality for women in the fifties and early 
sixties well before the movement caught the attention of the Nation and 
the world. Her friends and early colleagues included Gloria Steinem, 
Betty Friedan, and Patricia Ireland. Kathryn Clarenbach was credited by 
many of her early colleagues for providing the organizational glue that 
held the women's movement together and allowed it to move forward.
  On a more personal note Kathryn was an inspiration to me in deciding 
to pursue a life of public service. I grew up in Wisconsin, a State 
that reveres its long tradition of progressive, forward thinking 
leaders. My role models were people like Bob LaFolette, Gaylord Nelson, 
and Kathryn Clarenbach.
  To me, Kathryn exemplied all that is good about the term activist. 
Her genuine passion for the things she believed in was bolstered by 
research, sound reasoning, good argumentation, and a cooperative 
demeanor that helped move opponents closer to her point of view without 
necessarily realizing they had moved at all. Rarely has one person 
contributed so much to the lives of so many. She will be missed.

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