[Congressional Record Volume 154, Number 49 (Monday, March 31, 2008)]
[House]
[Page H1797]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         WOMEN'S HISTORY MONTH

   The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentlewoman from Texas (Ms. Jackson-Lee) is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Ms. JACKSON-LEE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I rise tonight in honor of 
women's history month, and to pay tribute to the countless mothers and 
grandmothers, sisters and daughters, friends and neighbors that are 
active across our communities, cities, and our Nation. Women who 
inspire us, who are the conscience of our communities, and, most of 
all, women who are the unsung heroes of our shared historical past.
  In the early days of our great Nation, women were relegated to 
second-class status. Women were considered sub-sets of their husbands, 
and after marriage they did not have the right to own property, 
maintain their wages, or sign a contract, much less vote. It was 
expected that women be obedient wives, never to hold a thought or 
opinion independent of their husbands. It was considered improper for 
women to travel alone or to speak in public.
  The fight for women's suffrage was formally begun in 1848, and, in 
1919, after years of petitioning, picketing, and protest parades, the 
Nineteenth Amendment was passed by both houses of Congress and in 1920 
it became ratified under the presidency of Woodrow Wilson.
  However, the right to vote did not give women equal rights, and 
subsequent decades saw an ongoing struggle for equality. A major 
success came in with Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, also 
known as the Patsy T. Mink Equal Opportunity in Education Act, in honor 
of its principal author. This law, enacted on June 23, 1972, states 
``No person in the United States shall, on the basis of sex, be 
excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be 
subjected to discrimination under any education program or activity 
receiving Federal financial assistance.''
  Title XI, introduced by Congresswoman Patsy Mink (also notable as the 
first Asian American woman elected to Congress), has opened the doors 
to countless educational activities, perhaps most prominently high 
school and collegiate athletics, to women. Congresswoman Mink's legacy 
lives on as, each year, hundreds of women across the Nation participate 
in NCAA athletics, learn teamwork and perseverance, earn scholarships 
enabling them to study at college, and enjoy equal footing with men in 
the academic arena.
  Mr. Speaker, I am proud to pay tribute to the women, local heroes, of 
my district. Women like Ramona Tolliver, long time Fifth Ward resident, 
former Precinct Chair, founding board member of Fifth Ward Community 
Redevelopment Corporation, member of Our Mother of Mercy Catholic 
Church, and member of the Metropolitan Organization member, who is 
still actively advocating for her community. Women like Nellie Joyce 
Punch, long time Fifth Ward resident, retired educator at Phyllis 
Wheatley High School, former Precinct Chair, founding board member of 
Fifth Ward Community Redevelopment Corporation, member of Methodist 
Church, also still actively working on behalf of her community. Both 
Ms. Tolliver and Ms. Punch are active in Houston's Fifth Ward, where 
they act as the conscience for the community, calling for change and 
actively working to better our city.

  Women like Dr. Charlesetta Deason, principal of Houston's DeBakey 
High School for Health Professions. Dr. Deason helms a school that 
offers students interested in science and health careers an alternative 
to the traditional high school experience, located in the renowned 
Texas Medical Center and boasting an ethnically diverse faculty and an 
excellent introductory study of medicine.
  Or women like Harris County Commissioner Sylvia Garcia, the first 
Hispanic and first woman to be elected in her own right to the office. 
Commissioner Garcia is active in the Houston community, and she has 
served on more than 25 community boards and commissions, including the 
San Jacinto Girl Scouts, the Houston Hispanic Forum, the American 
Leadership Forum, the Texas Southern University Foundation and the 
Institute of Hispanic Culture.
  As a Nation, we have come a long way toward recognizing the important 
role women play, not only in our local communities, but in our Nation 
as a whole. Since 1917, when Representative Jeannette Rankin of Montana 
became the first woman to serve in Congress, 243 more women have served 
as U.S. Representatives or Senators. In 1968, Shirley Chisholm became 
the first African American woman elected to Congress; I am now proud to 
be one of 13 African American women serving in this body.
  In addition, we are now, for the first time, under the leadership of 
a woman Speaker of the House. Speaker Pelosi has led this Democratic 
Congress in a New Direction, listening to the will of the American 
people, as it was clearly expressed last November. We are also 
currently in the midst of a groundbreaking Presidential campaign, 
which, for the first time, sees a woman seriously vying for the 
nomination of one of the two major political parties.

  Mr. Speaker, the great tragedy of women's history is that, many 
times, the history of women is not written down. Too often, throughout 
the course of history, the contributions of women have gone unrecorded, 
unheralded, and are now forgotten. And so, Madam Speaker, during 
Women's History Month, we do not stand here only to remember the 
Eleanor Roosevelts, Harriet Tubmans, Barbara Jordans, and Rosa Parks, 
women who are celebrated in our schools and history books, but also the 
millions of female unsung heroes who built this Nation, and who made it 
truly great.
  I would like to pay special tribute to women, mothers, and 
grandmothers across the country. In particular, I would like to draw 
attention to the growing phenomenon of grandparents raising children. 
As of 1996, 4 million children were being raised by their grandparents, 
and statistics published the following year indicated that over one-
tenth of all grandparents provided the primary care for their 
grandchildren for at least six months and typically much longer. These 
numbers continue to grow, and these grandparents, generally ineligible 
for financial or social support, often suffer greatly to provide a safe 
and loving home for these children.
  In addition, Mr. Speaker, we pay tribute to the brave women who serve 
proudly in our Nation's military. We have come a long way since the 
first American woman soldier, Deborah Sampson of Massachusetts, who 
enlisted as a Continental Army soldier under the name of ``Robert 
Shurtlief.'' Women served with distinction in World War II: 350,000 
American women served during World War II, and 16 were killed in 
action. In total, they gained over 1,500 medals, citations and 
commendations. In December 1989, CPT Linda L. Bray, 29, became the 
first woman to command American soldiers in battle, during the invasion 
of Panama.

  The war in Iraq marks the first time in American history that a 
substantial number of the combat wounded are women. 350,000 women are 
serving in the U.S. military--almost 15 percent of active duty 
personnel, and one in every seven troops in Iraq is a woman. Women play 
a role in nearly all types of military operation, and they have time 
and time again demonstrated extreme bravery, courage, and patriotism.
  I would particularly like to honor one our heroic daughters: Army SPC 
Monica L. Brown. Brown is the first woman in Afghanistan and only the 
second female soldier since World War II to receive the Silver Star, 
the Nation's third-highest medal for valor. Army SPC Monica Brown was 
part of a four-vehicle convoy patrolling near Jani Kheil in the eastern 
province of Paktia on April 25, 2007, when a bomb struck one of the 
Humvees. After the explosion, in which five soldiers in her unit were 
wounded, Brown ran through insurgent gunfire and used her body to 
shield wounded comrades as mortars fell less than 100 yards away. Army 
Specialist Brown, a native Texan, represents the best of our Nation's 
fighting men and women, and she clearly demonstrates that the admirable 
qualities of patriotism, valor, and courage know no gender.
  Mr. Speaker, Women's History Month is an opportunity for all 
Americans to reflect on the women who have built, strengthened, and 
maintained this great Nation. Women who have often gone unrecognized, 
unheralded, and unlauded for their great achievements, sacrifices, and 
contributions. I ask my colleagues to join me in paying tribute to the 
women in their communities, in their families, and in their lives.

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