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House Co-Sponsorship Memoranda
House of Representatives
Session of 2015 - 2016
Regular Session
MEMORANDUM
| Posted: | August 26, 2016 10:21 AM |
|---|---|
| From: | Representative Madeleine Dean |
| To: | All House members |
| Subject: | Resolution Celebrating the 100th Anniversary of the First Woman Elected to Congress – Jeanette Rankin |
| In the near future, I will be introducing a resolution celebrating the 100th anniversary of the first woman to be elected to Congress, The Honorable Jeanette Rankin of Montana who served two nonconsecutive terms from 1917 to 1919, and 1941 to 1943. Ms. Rankin paved the way for women to serve in the United States Congress, and was a powerful advocate for peace and social welfare, and a leader in the women’s suffrage movement. According to the Center for American Women and Politics at Rutgers University 104 women (76 Democrats, 28 Republicans) hold seats in the United States Congress, comprising roughly 20% of the 535 members. Twenty women serve in the United States Senate and 84 women serve in the United States House of Representatives. Four women delegates (3 Democrats, 1 Republican) also represent American Samoa, the District of Columbia, Guam, and the Virgin Islands in the United States House of Representatives. All of these women currently serving stand on the shoulders of Ms. Rankin who started as the first woman member of Congress. Jeannette Rankin’s life was filled with extraordinary achievements. Aside from being the first woman elected to Congress, she was also one of the few suffragists elected to Congress and the only member of Congress to vote against U.S. participation in both World War I and World War II. She was a committed pacifist, who did not shy away from letting voters know how she felt about possible U.S. participation in World War I. Later in life, Rankin became an outspoken critic of the Vietnam War, leading a new generation in a march on Washington, D.C., to deliver a petition to the House Speaker, John McCormack. On her 90th birthday, June 11, 1970, she was honored with a reception for her lifetime achievements at the Rayburn Office Building in Washington, D.C. I hope you will join me in co-sponsoring this resolution that honors the legacy of a true political icon who paved the way for future women to serve in the United States Congress. |
Introduced as HR1031