[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 152 (2006), Part 4]
[Senate]
[Page 4263]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                         WOMEN'S HISTORY MONTH

  Mr. JOHNSON. Mr. President, today I want to give a statement on 
Women's History Month. This is an important time for Americans to 
reflect on the invaluable contributions women make in our society. 
Women are our families, our coworkers, and our neighbors. They juggle 
many roles in making our homes, our neighborhoods, and our country 
stronger. Eighty million women in our country are mothers. Sixty 
percent of American women work at least part time. Nearly 2 million 
American women are veterans. More than 200,000 women are doctors, and 
more than 2\1/2\ million women are registered nurses.
  South Dakota's own history is filled with women who balanced the 
needs of their families and their communities to make our country 
better. Mamie Pyle is one such woman. In 1902, Mamie's husband passed 
away when she was just 36, leaving her to raise four young children on 
her own. Not only did Mamie find a way to send all four of her children 
to college in the early 1900s, but she also led the South Dakota 
women's suffrage movement for a decade. Because of Mamie's 
determination, South Dakota ratified the national women's suffrage 
amendment in 1919. Mamie continued to serve her community as a member 
of the Huron College board of trustees for more than 40 years. In 1947, 
South Dakotans honored Mamie by naming her the State's Mother of the 
Year at age 81.
  It is women like Mamie who teach South Dakota girls--and all of us--
of the difference one person can make in our society and of the 
thousands of women who have made South Dakota the great State it is 
today.
  This month we remember that women are our soldiers, our doctors, our 
social workers, our mothers, and our teachers. And we remember the 
women who came before them and made these roles possible. So many of 
them are unknown to us, but our gratitude to all of them is no less 
real.
  Women's opportunities continue to expand in South Dakota, in America, 
and throughout the world. They are leaders in South Dakota, taking on 
new roles every day in our communities. Cecelia Fire Thunder is one 
such woman. Cecelia is the first female president of the Oglala Sioux 
Tribe. She has fought to improve the education of her tribe's children 
and the health of her tribe's community. This is not Cecelia's first 
role as a caregiver to her community. Before becoming president, she 
was a nurse and healthcare provider.
  Yet even as we celebrate South Dakota's women of yesterday and today, 
we live in uncertain times for women. As we honor the women who have 
helped us throughout history and those who make our country a better 
place today, it is imperative that we keep our promises to them.
  As the 200,000 active American women soldiers return home, we must 
keep our promise to them to give them access to the health care they 
need. Four million women are battered in their homes in this country 
every year. We must keep our promise to them to fully fund law 
enforcement and violence prevention programs under the Violence Against 
Women Act. More than 2,500 children will be born into poverty today 
alone in this country. We must keep our promise to their mothers that 
every child in every community in this country will receive a quality 
education. One in four Native American women live in poverty. We must 
keep our promise to them to make their communities stronger with 
programs that provide access to quality, affordable housing under the 
Native American Housing Assistance and Self Determination Act.
  And most importantly, when the women in our communities are 
vulnerable, we cannot abandon them. We cannot ignore their needs. When 
we know that the leading causes of death for women are heart disease 
and cancer--and the average fatality rates for South Dakotans with 
these diseases are higher than the national average fatality rates--we 
cannot cut Government support for research that will cure these deadly 
diseases as the current 2007 budget proposes. We as a community must 
stand by our promise to women to find a cure for these diseases.
  This month we honor the women who protect our values in our homes, in 
our communities and overseas. This month we thank them for their 
sacrifices, their compassion, and their leadership. This month we renew 
our promises to them to continue building a safer, better, more just 
society for them, for their families and for all Americans.

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