[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 29, Number 33 (Monday, August 23, 1993)]
[Pages 1639-1640]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Proclamation 6586--Women's Equality Day, 1993

 August 18, 1993

By the President of the United States

of America

A Proclamation

    On August 26, 1993, we celebrate the 73rd anniversary of the 
ratification of the Nineteenth Amendment to the Constitution. In 
declaring that the right to vote shall not be denied or abridged on 
account of sex, the Nineteenth Amendment guaranteed for women the most 
cherished prerogative of American citizenship.
    Since America was founded, women have demonstrated an active 
interest in shaping the practice of democratic government. But it was 
not until the passage of the Nineteenth Amendment that women's myriad 
contributions to the social, cultural, and economic life of our Nation 
began to receive the full acknowledgment they deserved. As women's 
voices continue to gain strength in the political arena, female elected 
officials at every level of government bring crucial insight to the 
decision-making process.
    The struggle for true equality among the sexes has not been limited 
to the public sphere. Broadening the franchise fundamentally changed our 
understanding of equal opportunity, helping to encourage shared 
responsibility in the home and personal growth in the work place. Today, 
more and more

[[Page 1640]]

women are leading the way through advancements in law, science, 
business, and the arts. As we approach the 21st century, women's 
unfailing strength and wisdom remain integral to ensuring the lasting 
prosperity of our Nation.
    Each year, we observe August 26 as ``Women's Equality Day,'' to 
honor the infinite sacrifices and contributions that women have made to 
the United States. On this occasion we reaffirm our national commitment 
to the distinctly American promise of guaranteed equality for all our 
people.
    In Witness Whereof, I have hereunto set my hand this eighteenth day 
of August, in the year of our Lord nineteen hundred and ninety-three, 
and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred 
and eighteenth.
                                            William J. Clinton

[Filed with the Office of the Federal Register, 11:37 a.m., August 19, 
1993]

Note: This proclamation was published in the Federal Register on August 
20.