[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 172 (Friday, October 1, 2021)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1056]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




             HONORING SOROPTIMIST INTERNATIONAL CENTENNIAL

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. JARED HUFFMAN

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, September 30, 2021

  Mr. HUFFMAN. Madam Speaker, I rise today with the honorable 
Congresswoman Jackie Speier, Congresswoman Anna Eshoo, and Congressman 
Mike Thompson in celebration of Soroptimist International reaching its 
centennial on October 1, 2021. A global volunteer movement with over 
72,000 members in 121 countries, Soroptimist, later named Soroptimist 
International, was established to advocate for gender equality and 
human rights, a mission that it has stayed true to this day.
  Founded in 1921 when women were still not permitted to join service 
organizations, Soroptimist began as an 80-member club in Oakland, 
California with a vision for a world where women and girls were 
provided the resources and support to achieve their individual and 
collective potential. The club's first project was Save the Redwoods, 
confronting logging companies, lobbying the legislature, and rallying 
public support to designate a portion of the forest as protected land, 
which remains today.
  Within 5 years, the organization, renamed Soroptimist International, 
grew to 15 clubs throughout the United States. In 1924, the first 
Soroptimist club in Europe was founded in Paris and fueled the 
establishment of clubs throughout the continent. Several federations 
were established across the globe from Australia to Africa, leading 
projects to support refugees, secure housing for the impoverished, 
assist individuals with disabilities, and provide vocational training 
for women and girls. Uniting these federations, Soroptimist 
International Association was awarded consultative status in 1950 by 
the United Nations Economic and Social Counsel, an honor reserved for 
about 3,000 non-governmental organizations worldwide. UNICEF also 
granted the organization consultative status for service projects 
assisting children in 1966.
  Today, Soroptimist International includes 5 federations worldwide: 
Africa, the Americas, Europe, Great Britain and Ireland, and the South 
West Pacific. Their current priorities towards achieving gender equity 
include strategically addressing child marriage, female genital 
mutilation, domestic violence, rights of older women, migration, and 
human trafficking.
  Madam Speaker, Soroptimist International has continued to be an 
innovative leader in promoting human rights and gender equity 
worldwide. Through the unwavering dedication of its many members and 
its continually growing network, the organization has never lost sight 
of its original purpose to educate, empower, and transform the lives of 
women and girls across the globe. Therefore, please join me in 
congratulating Soroptimist International for a century of inspiring 
work, and in wishing them many more years of success.

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