Assemblymember Huber Reminds Constituents that Women’s Equality Day Marks Continuing Struggle

Assemblymember Alyson L. Huber (D-El Dorado Hills) joins constituents in celebrating Women’s Equality Day on August 26th, 2009. Ninety-eight years ago California allowed women the right to vote, but it wasn’t until August 26th, 1920, that the United States passed the 19th amendment to the Constitution allowing all American women the right to vote.

The 19th Amendment was the culmination of a 72-year-long civil rights movement that originated at the world’s first women’s rights convention held in Seneca Falls, New York, in 1848. Several generations of women’s suffrage supporters wrote, lectured, marched, and lobbied to achieve what many Americans considered a radical change to the Constitution.

“As a working mother, I realize the contributions that the 19th Amendment has made to my life and the lives of other women in the United States. If not for the 19th Amendment, I would not have had the opportunity to be a state representative,” said Assemblymember Huber.

This year’s Women’s Equality Day comes just a few months after the implementation of the federal Lily Ledbetter Fair Pay Act. In California, state legislators are working on a statewide fair pay act, Assembly Bill 793 (Jones), which ensures that victims of illegal pay discrimination continue to have a fair opportunity to seek redress in the courts for violations of state law. When women still earn only 77 cents to every dollar men earn, measures such as AB 793 prove extremely helpful in achieving pay equality. Assemblymember Huber voted for the bill.

“While endeavors such as the Lily Ledbetter Fair Pay Act are an excellent sign of how much progress we’ve made, they also serve as a reminder of how far we still have to go before we truly achieve equality,” Huber asserted.

“As women continue to distinguish themselves in boardrooms, classrooms, courtrooms, and family rooms across America, let’s renew our efforts to empower all women with the rights and opportunities promised by our founders and fought for by the amazing women and men whose accomplishments we honor today.”

Those visiting the Capitol this week can visit a display on the second-floor rotunda to learn more about the suffrage movement.

Submitted by Assemblymember Huber.