Fayetteville, NY – U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand today announced the bipartisan Women’s Suffrage Centennial Commission Act (S.3073) at the Matilda Joslyn Gage Home in Fayetteville. This legislation would establish a Women’s Suffrage Centennial Commission in honor of the 100th anniversary of the passage of 19th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which guaranteed women the right to vote. The Commission would work with federal, state and local governments, private organizations, as well as Congress to develop and coordinate educational activities for Americans to learn about the suffrage movement. Under this legislation, the Commission would have the ability to award grants to organizations in Central New York and across the country to support programs commemorating the anniversary of the 19th Amendment.
“This legislation would help educate young people around the country about the unparalleled importance of the women’s suffrage movement in American history” said Senator Gillibrand. “The women’s suffrage movement was born in New York, and nearly a century after the 19th Amendment was passed, our state continues to be at the forefront of fighting for women’s rights, from paid family leave to equal pay for equal work. I will urge all of my colleagues in the Senate to support the Women’s Suffrage Centennial Commission Act, so that our nation can properly commemorate this pivotal moment in American history.”
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The State of New York was the birthplace of the women’s suffrage movement and it hosts some of the most legendary landmarks that helped shape this monumental gain in America’s history. New York was a powerful force in the movement for equal rights for women and the passage and ratification of the Nineteenth amendment. This bill provides the opportunity for New York to be recognized as an instrumental part in the struggle for women’s suffrage by providing grant funding for programs and activities that commemorate the efforts of the movement and the role of New Yorkers who promoted the core values of our democracy.
“It is fitting that we are gathered today in the Women’s Rights Room at the Matilda Joslyn Gage Home. This is where Matilda Joslyn Gage planned, organized and wrote about the Women’s Suffrage Movement. Today we stand in this room to put forward the appropriate way to commemorate the centennial of the woman suffrage victory in 2020,” said Sally Roesch Wagner, Executive Director of the Matilda Joslyn Gage Foundation. “Senator Gillibrand’s Women’s Suffrage Centennial Commission Act will ensure we carry the spirit of social justice forward by ensuring our foremothers are formally recognized for fighting for our right to vote.”
Senator Gillibrand is joined by U.S. Senators Barbara Mikulski (D-MD), Susan Collins (D-ME), Debbie Stabenow (D-MI), Mazie Hirono (D-HI), Patty Murray (D-WA), Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), Barbara Boxer (D-CA), Heidi Heitkamp (D-ND), Maria Cantwell (D-WA), Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) and Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) on the Women’s Suffrage Centennial Commission Act.
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