[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 97 (Tuesday, June 7, 2022)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E588-E589]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 IN RECOGNITION OF AN INSTALLATION AT THE NEW YORK HISTORICAL SOCIETY 
                    HONORING EDITH ``EDIE'' WINDSOR

                                  _____
                                 

                        HON. CAROLYN B. MALONEY

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, June 7, 2022

  Mrs. CAROLYN B. MALONEY of New York. Madam Speaker, I rise to pay 
tribute to Edith ``Edie'' Windsor for her invaluable contributions to 
the LGBTQ+ rights movement and in recognition of a new installation at 
the New York Historical Society--Edith Windsor: Champion

[[Page E589]]

of Marriage Equality. This past September, the New York Historical 
Society held a ceremonial groundbreaking for the American LGBTQ+ 
Museum, New York's first museum dedicated to LGBTQ+ history and 
culture, which is set to open in 2024. This new installation honoring 
Ms. Windsor was made possible through the contribution of artifacts 
from her archive by her widow, Judith Kasen-Windsor.
  Edie Windsor first became involved in the fight for equality after 
the 1969 Stonewall Riots and quickly emerged as a leader. Her historic 
challenge to the unconstitutional Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) 
compelled the federal government to recognize valid marriages between 
same sex couples and paved the way for marriage equality in the United 
States.
  Ms. Windsor grew up during the Great Depression, the youngest of 
three children in a Russian Jewish immigrant family. She received her 
undergraduate degree from Temple University and a master's degree in 
mathematics from New York University. The following year she began to 
work at IBM and was steadily promoted to the top technical position 
during her 16 years at the company.
  In 1963, Edie Windsor met her first wife, Thea Spyer. Two years later 
the couple began dating. They became engaged in 1967 despite the lack 
of legal recognition of same sex couples anywhere in the United States. 
After the 1969 Stonewall Rebellion, Ms. Windsor and Ms. Spyer became 
more involved in supporting and advocating for rights for the City's 
LGBTQ+ community. Ms. Windsor volunteered with the LGBTQ+ Community 
Center, the East End Gay Organization, Gay & Lesbian Advocates & 
Defenders, and the 1994 Gay Games in New York. She also served on the 
board of Services & Advocacy for the LGBT GLBT Elders (SAGE) and help 
found Old Queers Acting Up, a social justice skit comedy and 
improvisation group.
  In 2009, Thea Spyer passed away, leaving the entirety of her estate 
to her wife, Edie. Due to DOMA, Edie Windsor was prohibited from 
claiming the estate tax exemption for surviving spouses and was faced 
with a nearly half million-dollar tax liability. In 2010, Ms. Windsor 
sued the federal government for a full tax refund in a series of court 
cases that made it all the way to the Supreme Court in 2013. In 2013, 
Edie Windsor's suit was upheld by the Supreme Court ruling finding DOMA 
unconstitutional. This validation of her decades long partnership with 
Ms. Spyer was not only a vindication for Ms. Windsor but for countless 
LGBTQ+ couples around the Nation. Two years later, the Supreme Court 
made marriage a constitutional right guaranteed to all Americans. In 
2016, Ms. Windsor found love again, marrying Judith Kasen-Windsor. Ms. 
Windsor's passing in the fall of 2017 marked the end of a truly heroic 
life spent championing equality.
  Madam Speaker, I ask my colleagues to join me in recognizing the 
extraordinary gumption and the incomparable advocacy of Ms. Windsor on 
behalf of the entire LGBTQ+ community throughout her long and 
accomplished life.

                          ____________________