HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

152nd GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HOUSE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION NO. 89

DESIGNATING MARCH 2024 AS WOMEN’S HISTORY MONTH IN DELAWARE AND HONORING THE LEADERSHIP AND ACHIEVEMENTS OF WOMEN THROUGHOUT OUR STATE’S RICH HISTORY.

WHEREAS, women of all walks of life, races, ethnicities and backgrounds have made considerable contributions throughout history, impacting young people of today; and

WHEREAS, women play a critical role in furthering public policy, equality, diversity, science, art, activism, education, and overall quality of life in our communities; and

WHEREAS, throughout centuries suffragists, activists and everyday women have had to continually fight for equal treatment and basic rights under the law; and

WHEREAS, exceptional women leaders, such as Susan B. Anthony, Florence Bayard Hilles, Annie Jump Cannon, Emily Bissell, Mary Ann Shadd Cary, Mabel Vernon, Margaret Irving Handy, Stephanie Kwolek, U.S. Representative Lisa Blunt Rochester, Mabel Lloyd Ridgely, Pauline A. Young, Mary Ann Sorden Stuart and Governor Ruth Ann Minner have paved the way for progress and change; and

WHEREAS, we acknowledge the trailblazing women of the 152 ^nd General Assembly, with 24 women in the House and Senate, Rep. Stephanie T. Bolden, Rep. Sherry Dorsey Walker, Rep. Kendra Johnson, Rep. Debra Heffernan, Rep. Sherae’a Moore, Rep. Krista Griffith, Rep. DeShanna Neal, Rep. Valerie Longhurst, Rep. Melissa Minor-Brown, Rep. Sophie Phillips, Rep. Kimberly Williams, Rep. Stell Parker Selby, Rep. Cyndie Romer, Rep. Madinah Wilson-Anton, Rep. Kerri Evelyn Harris, Rep. Valerie Jones Giltner, Sen. Elizabeth Lockman, Sen. Sarah McBride, Sen. Kyle Evans Gay, Sen. Laura Sturgeon, Sen. Stephanie Hansen, and Sen. Nicole Poore, Sen. Marie Pinkney, Sen. Kyra Hoffner; and

WHEREAS, we recognize and celebrate the 9 female Speakers of State Houses in the country, including our own Speaker Valerie Longhurst, the first female Speaker of the House in Delaware history; and

WHEREAS, we recognize and celebrate Speaker Joanna McClinton, the first female Speaker of the House in our neighboring state of Pennsylvania; and

WHEREAS, Speaker McClinton has made history three times during her tenure in the nation’s oldest legislative body, beginning with 2018 as the first female and first African American elected as House Democratic Caucus Chair. She then made history again in 2020 as she became the first female leader of the Democratic Caucus. In 2023, she was elected to serve as the first female Speaker of the Pennsylvania House; and

WHEREAS, recognizing women and their accomplishments presents the opportunity to celebrate their contributions to society and the greater good, as well as acknowledge the struggles and barriers they have had overcome to lay the foundation for future generations; and

WHEREAS, Women’s History Week has origins from the 1980s, and beginning in March 1987, National Women’s History Month has been celebrated in the United States annually; and

WHEREAS, March 8, 2024 commemorates International Women’s Day, honoring trailblazing women across our globe; and

WHEREAS, the 2024 theme of National Women’s History Month celebrates “Women Who Advocate for Equity, Diversity and Inclusion”, and recognizes wom en throughout the country who understand that, for a positive future, we need to eliminate bias and discrimination entirely from our lives and institutions.

NOW, THEREFORE:

BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the 152 ^nd  General Assembly of the State of Delaware, the Senate concurring therein, that March 2024 is Women’s History Month in Delaware, and that all Delawareans are urged to commemorate and celebrate the accomplishments of women throughout our state and nation.

SYNOPSIS

This resolution designates March 2024 as Women’s History Month in Delaware to raise awareness and celebrate the contributions of women in our society, and for the greater good of our nation.