[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 29 (Tuesday, February 14, 1995)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E340]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


     IN HONOR OF THE 75TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE LEAGUE OF WOMEN VOTERS

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                           HON. STEPHEN HORN

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, February 14, 1995
  Mr. HORN. Mr. Speaker, in 1856, President Franklin Pierce delivered a 
special message to Congress underscoring the requirement for citizens 
to participate in the governing process of their Nation:

       No citizen of our country should permit himself to forget 
     that he is a part of its Government and entitled to be heard 
     in the determination of its policy and its measures, and that 
     therefore the highest considerations of personal honor and 
     patriotism require him to maintain by whatever power or 
     influence he may possess the integrity of the laws of the 
     Republic.

  When President Franklin Pierce spoke this charge of citizen 
involvement in the mid-19th century, he was encapsulating the spirit of 
grassroots participation and, without knowing it, foreshadowing a 20th 
century American institution: the League of Women Voters. For the past 
three-quarters of a century, members of the league have provided a way 
for Americans at all levels of our society to influence the process and 
assure the expansion of our democracy.
  The success of the League of Women Voters has been the result of an 
all-encompassing belief that democracy depends upon the informed and 
active participation of its citizens. Through this credo, the league 
agenda has led members to promote an open governmental system that is 
representative, accountable, and responsive. Internationally, the goal 
has been, and remains, to promote peace in an interdependent world by 
cooperating with other nations. Environmentally, members of the league 
have embraced goals that will promote protection and wise management of 
natural resources in the public interest. The league and its members' 
commitment to democracy has meant their active support to secure social 
and economic justice for all Americans.
  It is my great pleasure to salute the founders of the League of Women 
Voters, as well as the many thousands of members who have carried on 
their tradition for three-quarters of a century. America is a stronger 
nation for their determination and their efforts.


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