The Women in Our Lives
“The Women in Our Lives”
March 2011
This month marks Women’s History Month, a time to pay tribute to and remember the women who have shaped the course of our Nation’s history and paved the way for the future generations. It also marks the 100th Celebration of International Women’s Day, and I recently co-sponsored legislation to formally recognize this celebration of the achievements of women and to reaffirm our commitment to ending discrimination and violence against women, ensure the safety and welfare of women and girls, and pursue policies to provide their basic rights.
Almost one-half of the nation’s workforce is comprised of women, and women have now surpassed men as the majority of college students. They have made extraordinary contributions in all aspects of society and our economy, but there is still work to do to provide parity in the workplace. In the last Congress, I supported the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, landmark legislation that was signed into law to amend the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The law was rooted in a U.S. Supreme Court decision in a case where Lilly Ledbetter, a Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company employee, sued when she discovered near the end of her 19-year career that she was paid significantly less than her male counterpart. I was also pleased to support the Paycheck Fairness Act which builds upon the Equal Pay Act of 1963 to help end the discriminatory practice of paying a woman less than a man for performance of the same job.
Women are also widely recognized for their prominent role in caring for families. Women are often care-givers for children which requires courage, discipline and love. These remarkable women exhibit strength and perseverance in the daily routine of child-rearing, and yet many are also economic earners for their household. I am an advocate of helping mothers who work outside of the home with access to affordable quality child care and expanding the Child Tax Credit for parents.
We also have an obligation to help enhance and protect women’s health. While disease can strike both genders, heart disease is the number one killer of American women and cancer is number two. Supporting research and health education initiatives continue to be a top priority, and that is why I have supported so many measures to specifically promote health care for women. Some of those include: 1) the HEART (Heart Disease Education, Analysis Research, and Treatment) for Women Act to ensure education programs are waged for the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of heart disease and stroke; 2) the National Breast and Cervical Cancer Early Detection Program Act to expand cancer screenings; 3) the Breast Cancer Patient Protection Act to provide the necessary coverage for treatment and improve the benefits for associated hospital stays; and 4) the Melanie Blocker-Stokes Postpartum Depression Research and Care Act to support women after childbirth.
My strong record on protecting women from violence is underscored by my support of the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) and the Victims of Crime Act (VOCA). This legislation is designed to assist victims, their advocates, law enforcement and prosecutors in the effort to keep women safe. VOCA also assists millions of victims by providing grants to the community-based agencies that specialize in crisis intervention, counseling, and legal assistance. Futhermore, through my work as a member of The U.S. Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe, also known as the Helsinki Commission, we are taking significant steps to eradicate trafficking and the exploitation of women here and across the globe.
Women have overcome enormous obstacles in the pursuit of their dreams. Women have made incredible contributions to enhance the quality of life for their families, communities, our nation, and around the world. Let us honor not only the women pioneers who came before us, but also honor those women in our lives today.
