[Federal Register Volume 64, Number 41 (Wednesday, March 3, 1999)]
[Presidential Documents]
[Pages 10383-10384]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 99-5463]


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  Federal Register / Vol. 64, No. 41 / Wednesday, March 3, 1999 / 
Presidential Documents  

[[Page 10383]]


                Proclamation 7170 of March 1, 1999

                
Women's History Month, 1999

                By the President of the United States of America

                A Proclamation

                A little more than a century ago, an editorial in the 
                Pittsburgh Dispatch opposing women's suffrage and 
                criticizing women in the work force so infuriated a 
                young reader that she wrote a letter in protest. Her 
                articulate response prompted the newspaper's editor to 
                offer her a job, and thus Elizabeth Cochrane--later 
                known as Nellie Bly--began her career in journalism. A 
                pioneer of investigative reporting, she exposed the 
                brutal conditions in the care of the mentally ill, 
                reported on poor working conditions in factories, and 
                wrote of the indignities suffered by women in prison. 
                This year, as we reflect on America's past in 
                preparation for our celebration of the new millennium, 
                we recognize that the talent, energy, intellect, and 
                determination of countless women like Nellie Bly have 
                shaped our destiny and enriched our society since our 
                earliest days as a Nation.

                From the women who organized the East India Company tea 
                boycotts before the Boston Tea Party to Deborah 
                Sampson, who fought as a soldier in the Revolutionary 
                War; from Angelina and Sarah Grimke, who spoke out 
                against slavery to Harriet Tubman, who risked her life 
                as a conductor on the Underground Railroad; from 
                suffragist Carrie Chapman Catt to sharecropper Fannie 
                Lou Hamer, who faced violence and endured intimidation 
                to become a leader of the Civil Rights movement; from 
                environmentalist Rachel Carson, who changed our way of 
                looking at the world, to physicist Chien-Shiung Wu, who 
                changed our way of looking at the universe, women's 
                history is truly America's history. That is why I was 
                pleased to establish in July of last year the 
                President's Commission on the Celebration of Women in 
                American History, whose recommendations will help us to 
                better understand and rejoice to appreciate the role 
                and accomplishments of women.

                During Women's History Month, we honor the generations 
                of women who have served our Nation as doctors and 
                scientists, teachers and factory workers, soldiers and 
                secretaries, athletes and mothers. We honor the women 
                who have worked the land, cared for children and the 
                elderly, nurtured families and businesses, served in 
                charitable organizations and public office. And we 
                remember the good friends we have so recently lost--
                women such as Bella Abzug, Marjory Stoneman Douglas, 
                and Florence Griffith-Joyner--whose achievements and 
                example continue to light our lives.

                But we must do more than remember. We must build on the 
                legacy of the millions of women, whether renowned or 
                anonymous, who have contributed so much to the strength 
                and character of our Nation. We must ensure that women 
                have equal access to the education and opportunities 
                they need to excel. We must guarantee that women 
                receive equal pay in the workplace. We must promote 
                policies and programs--including affordable, high-
                quality child care--that enable working women to 
                succeed both on the job and in their homes. And we must 
                work to ensure that women have the comfort of knowing 
                they can retire in security. Women who have gone before 
                us accomplished so much, often in the face of hardship 
                and discrimination; we can only imagine what women will 
                accomplish in the future if we break down the remaining 
                barriers that prevent them from reaching their full 
                potential.

[[Page 10384]]

                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 March 1999 as Women's 
                History Month. I encourage all Americans to observe 
                this month with appropriate programs, ceremonies, and 
                activities, and to remember throughout the year the 
                many heroic women whose many and varied contributions 
                have enriched our lives.

                IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this 
                first day of March, in the year of our Lord nineteen 
                hundred and ninety-nine, and of the Independence of the 
                United States of America the two hundred and twenty-
                third.

                    (Presidential Sig.)

[FR Doc. 99-5463
Filed 3-2-99; 11:21 am]
Billing code 3195-01-P