[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 40 (Wednesday, April 1, 1998)]
[House]
[Pages H2035-H2037]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
TRIBUTE TO THE LATE HONORABLE BELLA ABZUG
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the
gentlewoman from Hawaii (Mrs. Mink) is recognized for 5 minutes.
Mrs. MINK of Hawaii. Mr. Speaker, I rise with sadness to express my
personal condolence to the family of the late Bella Abzug.
Bella Abzug came to Congress in 1970. I had been elected 5 years
previously. We quickly became very close friends and collaborators.
Despite the fact that we came from very different backgrounds and from
opposite corners of this country, our concerns were the same. I had
been fighting against the Vietnam War for 5 years. The few of us who
opposed the war at that time had tried every parliamentary maneuver we
could think of to end the war. Clearly, after 5 years we were exhausted
and our struggles to turn the Nation's policies around needed help.
Bella's election to Congress gave us fresh vigor and new momentum.
She was a tireless, relentless advocate for peace. From the moment she
was sworn into office, she made her voice heard and fought with all her
might and power to get this country out of the war in Vietnam.
She knew that she was effective and she knew that her voice made a
difference.
Just as Bella fought for peace, she also fought for equality and
justice. With all her heart and soul, she stood for the rights of the
poor to be heard. She pushed her way to assure the poor a voice in the
deliberations of the Congress. She was their voice, and they loved her
for her commitment to their plight.
Justice was for Bella the right to earn a decent living and the right
to be able to provide for your family. She fought against
discrimination and championed the cause of equality for women. No one I
know did more for women than Bella. Her life was given to that cause.
No matter where she went, everyone knew by her presence that she was
their voice for equality and for justice.
She challenged the conscience of America to prove its worth as a
society by permitting women to claim their place as full and equal
citizens. Bella's best efforts were in building networks and forging
coalitions. She forced people to forget their turf wars and to work
together for the greater good. Even after she left Congress, she
continued in this work.
She organized huge demonstrations for abortion rights, for equal
rights, for child care, for food for the hungry and for the AIDS
programs. She led international conferences and taught women everywhere
how their combined voices could make important changes in their lives.
When formal government conferences were convened, she called
nongovernmental women together for massive counter-conferences. She
angered Presidents by challenging them to do better for women, for the
poor and the oppressed minorities. I counted Bella as one of my closest
friends. We counseled together on many occasions, even after we both
left Congress in 1976. We looked to each other for support and comfort
in a world that seldom understood nor cared to understand women and
politics. We knew that by joining together on many fronts, that we
could double the volume of our voices so that no one could miss the
message we wanted to convey.
Bella was a deeply caring and sensitive human being. She always asked
[[Page H2036]]
about your family when she met you. She worried about my daughter when
she was hurt in an automobile accident. She was always thoughtful and
generous in her personal relationships.
She taught me chutzpah, an important tool to make sure you are not
pushed to the back of the bus. She challenged regular order and paved
the way for all women to be heard.
Women today who have a place at the table have Bella Abzug to thank.
Without Bella, we would be years behind. When women's history is
finally written, I am certain that Bella's life will be among the most
celebrated.
Mr. Speaker, I include for the Record the following information about
Bella Abzug.
Bella Abzug
b. 1920
American lawyer and politician
``Women have been trained to speak softly and carry a
lipstick. Those days are over.''
introduction
Bella Abzug was elected to the U.S. House of
Representatives after a long career as a labor lawyer, civil-
liberties advocate, and peace activist. During the time she
served in Congress she challenged congressional decorum by
bluntly denouncing her male colleagues as a privileged elite
of white, middle-aged men who were out of touch with the
needs and aspirations of most Americans. Abzug was among the
most vocal members of congress demanding an immediate
withdrawal of American military forces from Indochina during
the Vietnam conflict in the 1970s. She also took strong
positions in favor of women's and minority rights and federal
aid to cities.
Abzug was born Bella Savitsky on July 24, 1920, the
daughter of a Emanuel and Esther Savitsky. Her father was a
butcher in New York City. In 1942 she graduated from Hunter
College in New York with a bachelor of arts degree. Two years
later she married Maurice Abzug, a stockbroker and novelist,
with whom she had two daughters. After earning a law degree
from Columbia University in New York in 1947, she practiced
law privately for 23 years, until she was elected to the U.S.
House of Representatives.
flamboyant congresswoman
During her two terms in Congress (1970-74) Abzug served on
the committee on public works and transportation and was
chair of the subcommittee on government information and
individual rights. She was also assistant Democratic whip to
Speaker Thomas P. O'Neill, Jr. Soon after Abzug reached the
floor of Congress she became a highly visible, flamboyant
figure, with her trademark wide-brimmed hats and feisty
manner. While her strongly worded, forthright speeches had
great popular appeal, her political allies often believed her
personal style detracted from their cause. Abzug was
criticized for preferring to make headlines on her own
instead of negotiating and compromising to pass legislation.
But the New York Democrat earned increasing respect from her
colleagues over the years while remaining true to her
political vision.
In her capacity as chair of the House subcommittee on
government information and individual rights, Abzug conducted
inquiries on covert and illegal activities by agencies of the
federal government. She helped produce the ``Government in
the Sunshine'' law, which gave the public greater access to
government records. Abzug co-founded the National Women's
Political Caucus in 1971 and authored numerous bills intended
to prevent sex discrimination and improve the status of
women. On local issues she devoted much of her time to
securing federal funds for New York City during the city's
fiscal crisis in the mid-1970s. In 1972 she wrote ``Bella!
Ms. Abzug Goes to Washington,'' an account of her experiences
as a congresswoman.
returns to law practice
Abzug gave up her congressional seat in 1976 to seek the
New York Democratic party nomination for the U.S. Senate,
narrowly losing the race to Daniel Patrick Moynihan. She went
on to run unsuccessfully for mayor of New York City in 1977
and for a congressional seat representing the East Side of
Manhattan in 1978. Political analysts attributed these losses
to her confrontational image and the conservative nature of
the electorate. President Jimmy Carter appointed Abzug co-
chair of the National Advisory Committee for Women. Carter
dismissed her in 1979 after the committee issued a report
criticizing the president's decision to cut funding for
women's programs. She then returned to her legal practice.
Abzug remained in the public eye, however, as a lecturer,
television news commentator, and magazine columnist. She was
also an executive for women's organizations, including Women-
USA, a grass-roots political action organization, and the
Women's Foreign Policy Council.
writes book on ``gender gap''
Abzug drew on her decades-long leadership experience in the
women's movement to write ``Gender Gap: Abzug's Guide to
Political Power for Women,'' which was published in 1984.
With co-author Mim Kelber, Abzug examined the possible causes
and political consequences of the ``gender gap,'' the wide
disparity in voting patterns between men and women noticed in
some American elections. In the 1980 presidential election,
for instance, many more women than men voted to reelect
Carter, and the gender gap made the difference in a number of
elections for state governors later in the decade. Although
statisticians have had trouble identifying the specific
political differences that may separate the sexes at the
ballot box, Abzug credits the feminist movement for
encouraging women's independence.
becomes environmental advocate
In her book Abzug also outlined a range of political,
social, and economic issues on which women can have an
impact. Among them is the environment, an area in which Abzug
herself became active in the early 1990s. Appointed as
special adviser to the Secretary-General of the United
Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED),
she became a leading advocate of environmental security and a
more economically just world. In 1991 she was an organizer of
the Women's Congress for a healthy Planet as part of the
Earth Summit sponsored by the United Nations in Rio de
Janeiro, Brazil. The congress issued the ``Action Agenda for
the Twenty-first Century,'' which challenged men and women to
work together for a ``safe and sustainable future.'' Abzug
identified a particular role--and a higher degree of
freedom--for women in cleaning up ``the mess'' that has been
made throughout the world: ``I believe women will bring a new
vision, with new perspectives as to how and what to change,''
she told an interviewed. ``It's easier with women because
they are not part of what has taken place. They aren't
totally unshackled, not only by lack of ownership but by lack
of involvement in decisions to date. They are freer and more
independent.''
____
Honorary Chair Bella Abzug: A Woman of Strength
The 20th Anniversary Celebration of the Spirit of Houston
will kick off amidst memories of the 1977 Houston Conference,
which attracted 20,000 men and women, and visions of the 21st
Century. The National Women's Conference has named the
Honorable Bella S. Abzug, former Congresswoman, current
President of the Women in Environment and Development (WEDO),
guide and mentor to women worldwide, to serve as Honorary
Chair of the 20th Anniversary Celebration. The Conference
will be held in Washington, D.C. at the Georgetown University
Conference Center November 20-23, 1997.
Ms. Abzug maintains an unwavering struggle for a world
where women participate fully and equally in all aspects of
life. She works tirelessly to give voice and visibility to
women worldwide by forging links and partnerships at every
level. Abzug encourages women to achieve equality through
economic, social and political empowerment.
While serving in the United States Congress representing
New York, Congresswoman Abzug introduced a bill in 1975
proposing that a national women's conference be held as part
of the Bicentennial celebration and other women members of
the House of Representatives united with her to work toward
the adoption of the legislation. Under the onslaught of this
determined group, Public Law 94-167 passed in the House on
December 10, 1975 and by the Senate on December 23, 1975.
Public Law 94-167 directed a 42-member National Commission,
presided over by Bella Abzug, to convene a National Women's
Conference, preceded by state and regional meetings. The
mandate read in part: ``. . . The Conference shall . . .
recognize the contributions of women to the development of
our country . . . assess the role of women in economic,
social, cultural and political development . . . identify
barriers that prevent women from participating fully and
equally in all aspects of national life and develop
recommendations for means by which such barriers can be
removed. . . .'' Although it amounted to less than one nickel
for each female in the country, Congress appropriated $5
million to carry forth the mandate of the Public Law. But
women know how to ``make do'', and Bella Abzug led the
nation's women in that effort.
After a year of hard work and devotion to the task,
Presiding Officer Bella Abzug stood at the podium on November
19, 1977 and extended a welcome to three First Ladies, whose
sheer presence was more moving than anyone would have
imagined. First Ladies Rosalynn Carter, Betty Ford and Lady
Bird Johnson expelled any notion that they were ceremonial
wives. They said they were women who could speak for
themselves. Lady Bird Johnson said she had come to believe
that the women's movement belongs to women of all ages.
Ms. Abzug was a key organizer at the Fourth World
Conference on Women held in Beijing in 1995. During the
Conference, she received numerous awards and accolades that
recognized her many contributions. Prior to the Beijing
Conference, in 1994, she was inducted into the National
Women's Hall of Fame in Seneca Falls, New York where the
first women's rights meeting was held in 1848.
Bella Abzug is a civil rights attorney and has earned
recognition as a leading women's rights advocate and public
speaker. She is the founder of WEDO, an international network
with consultative status at the United Nations. WEDO networks
organize women's caucus meetings at major international
conferences of particular concern to women.
[[Page H2037]]
Bella S. Abzug, one of the most admired women of America,
honors the 20th Anniversary Celebration of the Spirit of
Houston and the National Women's Conference by her presence
and her acceptance of the role of Honorary Chair.
Information on the 20th Anniversary Celebration, including
Conference and hotel registration forms, can be obtained at
the NWC Web site.
____
Contract With Women of the USA
(By Bella Abzug)
The downsizing of women off the national political agenda
is being challenged in a new and exciting campaign. The
``Contract with Women of the USA'' is gathering momentum
across the country.
Even though we are a majority of the U.S. population, women
are being attacked, trivialized and ignored in much of the
current political debates. Modest gains that we have won in
years of struggle are in jeopardy. The time has come to put
women's needs and concerns up front, in actions as well as
words.
Initiated by the Women's Environment and Development
Organization, of which I am a co-founder, and the Center for
Women Policy Studies, the Contract campaign is endorsed by
growing numbers of women's organizations, women members of
Congress, state legislators and others. Our target is a
thousand endorsements by this fall. Even more important, the
Contract provides a flexible organizing and advocacy vehicle
for addressing state and local issues of importance to women.
Women state legislators are taking the lead in supporting
the Contract and working with women and other public sector
groups to develop their own state contracts. Kicking off the
campaign on International Women's Day on March 7th were women
legislators in Arizona, California, Iowa, Maryland, Minnesota
and New York.
Newt Gingrich's ``Contract with America'' has run into
stalemate and massive rejection by the American people. Our
``Contract with Women of the USA'' reflects the realities of
American women's lives in all our family, economic,
political, social, racial, age, religious and educational
diversity. It offers an alternative and unifying vision in
which women and men work together on an equal basis for our
mutual benefit.
The 12 principles and action commitments in our Contract
are based on the Platform for Action, approved by consensus
last September at the U.N. Fourth World Conference on Women
by the United States and 188 other governments, as well as by
30,000 nongovernmental women, including 7,000 from our
country.
The dozen commitments outlined in the ``Contract with Women
of the USA'' call for economic, social and political equality
for women; access to affordable health care and reproductive
rights; an end to discrimination and violence against women;
continuation of social safety nets for poor women and
children; inclusion of women in peace-making; educational
opportunities for women; and mechanisms to monitor and
further women's gains.
Women legislators in the six kickoff states have signed on
to the Contract. Similar actions are being planned in other
states. We welcome the support of women legislators and
activists throughout the country and urge them to join us in
this important effort.
____________________