[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 11 (Thursday, February 12, 1998)]
[Senate]
[Page S779]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




               WOMEN'S RIGHTS NATIONAL HISTORIC TRAIL ACT

   Mr. D'AMATO. Mr. President, I rise today with my friend and 
colleague, the senior Senator from New York, Senator Moynihan to 
introduce the ``Women's Rights National Historic Trail Act'' which 
authorizes that the Secretary of the Interior study alternatives for 
establishing a national historic trail to commemorate and interpret the 
history of women's rights. New York has that history.
  In 1848, despite social, legal and economic constraints, the action 
of several women from New York led to a movement that would eventually 
provide freedom to women across this country and for generations to 
come.
  In Seneca Falls, 1848, the first Women's Rights Convention was held 
leading the way for the 19th Amendment which granted women the right to 
vote. On July 19th, the first day of the two day convention, the 
Declaration of Sentiments was read at the convention promoting the 
right to vote, the right for a woman to attain a higher education, the 
right to own property and the right to retain one's own wages--some of 
the most fundamental principles of our democracy. As stated by 
Elizabeth Cady Stanton, one of the leaders of the convention, ``We hold 
these truths to be self-evident: that all men and women are created 
equal.''
  The other leaders of the Convention including Lucretia Mott, Jane 
Hunt, Ann M'Clintock and Martha Wright began the movement to fulfill 
the freedom of Americans by changing the treatment of women in American 
society.
  I support the designation of a corridor commemorating the triumphs of 
these and other women, and believe that the Buffalo-Boston trail 
deserves serious consideration. Areas like Seneca Falls, where we can 
find the Elizabeth Cady Stanton House, and her church, the Old Trinity 
Church, I believe, should be part of the historical trail for women's 
history. Other areas in New York have a tremendous historical 
significance for women's rights including: the Susan B. Anthony House, 
voting site and gravesite in Rochester and the M'Clintock House where 
the idea of a convention was conceived and the Declaration of 
Sentiments was written.
  This bill only requires the Secretary to study the alternatives 
available to him and does not dictate where that commemoration occurs. 
But the events that occurred the summer of 1848 should be remembered 
and treated as part of a historical connection. The importance of 
Seneca Falls is key in the advancement of the rights of women in our 
nation and that is why I have also joined with Senator Moynihan in June 
1997 to introduce a S. Con. Res. 35, urging the U.S. Postal Service to 
issue a commemorative postage stamp to celebrate the 150th anniversary 
of the first Women's Right Convention.
  I am pleased to join Senator Moynihan in this effort to preserve the 
historical significance of women's rights in New York and I urge my 
colleagues to join us in co-sponsoring this legislation.

                          ____________________