[Federal Register Volume 59, Number 162 (Tuesday, August 23, 1994)]
[Unknown Section]
[Page 0]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: X94-70823]


[[Page Unknown]]

[Federal Register: August 23, 1994]



 


                          Women's Equality Day, 1994




               By the President of the United States of America



                                A Proclamation



      Seventy-four years ago, the 19th Amendment was ratified, granting 
      women the right to vote after many years of painstaking struggle 
      and hard work by courageous suffragists. Empowered by the efforts 
      of the brave and pioneering women who came before them, women 
      today have secured positions as leaders in industry, government, 
      and academia. They serve as role models in every aspect of our 
      society.
      The 19th Amendment did more than secure the right to vote for 
      women. It recognized and affirmed the fundamental principle upon 
      which this great Nation was founded--equality--``that all 
      [persons] are created equal, that they are endowed by their 
      Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are 
      Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.'' The ratification of 
      the 19th Amendment was an important step toward ensuring that the 
      civil and political rights guaranteed by the Constitution would 
      truly be the equal rights of all Americans.
      By recognizing this previously disenfranchised segment of our 
      society, the 19th Amendment became one of the landmark civil 
      rights laws in America, standing side by side with the 
      Emancipation Proclamation, and the 13th, 14th, and 15th 
      Amendments. This year also marks the 4th anniversary of the 
      Americans with Disabilities Act, the 30th anniversary of the 
      Civil Rights Act of 1964, as well as the 40th anniversary of 
      Brown v. Board of Education. These laws and that pivotal 
      decision, along with the 19th Amendment, have marked the history 
      of our Nation's progress in guaranteeing that every member of our 
      society is treated equally under the law.
      We observe ``Women's Equality Day'' to commemorate the 
      ratification of the 19th Amendment almost three-quarters of a 
      century ago. As we do so, we also honor the important 
      contributions and achievements of women in this country, and we 
      commit ourselves anew to fulfilling our obligation to promote 
      equality for all Americans.
      The famous woman suffragist, Helen H. Gardener, advised the 
      Congress in calling for passage of the 19th Amendment:

         Let us either stop our pretence before the nations of the 
         earth of being a republic and having ``equality before 
         the law'' or else let us become the republic we pretend 
         to be.

      To further celebrate and commemorate the 19th Amendment this 
      year, let us not take for granted our precious right to vote, and 
      let us rededicate ourselves to removing the barriers that remain 
      in women's paths.
      NOW, THEREFORE, I, WILLIAM J. CLINTON, President of the United 
      States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the 
      Constitution and laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim 
      August 26, 1994, as Women's Equality Day. I call upon the 
      citizens of our great Nation to observe this day with appropriate 
      programs and activities.
      IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this eighteenth 
      day of August, in the year of our Lord nineteen hundred and 
      ninety-four, and of the Independence of the United States of 
      America the two hundred and nineteenth.