Almost twenty years ago, President Clinton
began the tradition of issuing a presidential proclamation every March in honor
of Women’s History Month. Last week, President Obama issued his proclomation
celebrating the contibutions women have made to our country. You can read the
full proclomation here.
Washington state has a proud history of female
leadership. In 1976, Washington elected Governor Dixy Lee Ray.
Governor Ray was the fifth female governor in the United States, and only the
second who wasn’t a wife or widow of a previous governor. Patty Murray
became Washington’s first female senator in 1992. Finally, Washington became the
first state to have both a female governor and two female senators in
2005.
Currently, 45 of Washington's 147 legislators are
women. That equals out to about 30 percent, which makes us the 8th best state in
terms of female representation.
18 of those 45 women call the House Democratic Caucus home. They come
from places like Vancouver, Anacortes, Puyallup, Tacoma, and Seattle. They are
nurses, teachers, veterinarians, former school board members, and
attorneys.
They include a black belt in Tae Kwon Do, a former
defense intelligence analyst at the Pentagon, an accomplished guitar player, and
a powerlifter. They are mothers and grandmothers - and have cats with names like
Astrophe.
In the legislature, they are leading the fight to
protect our priorities - providing for our schools and building a better future,
quality and affordable healthcare, opportunity and skills for the real world,
and investing in businesses and jobs for a secure middle class.
We appreciate the contributions this diverse
group of women bring to our caucus every month of the year. However, in March we
will take a little extra time to celebrate the women at the table, the struggles
they overcame to get there, and the men who helped them along the way.
