Hillary Scholten Marks Women's History Month On The House Floor

Forbes Breaking News

On the House floor, Rep. Hillary Scholten (D-MI) marked Women's History Month.

Transcript

00:00250 years ago, the United States won

00:04its independence in the Revolutionary War,

00:07and our journey as the United States of America began.

00:12But 250 years ago,

00:15I could not be standing where I am today.

00:18250 years ago, women did not have the right to vote,

00:24to hold public office, to own property.

00:29250 years ago, some women were property.

00:36250 years ago, women were

00:39a footnote to the story of our country's founding.

00:43But today, 250 years later,

00:48women make up 125 members in the Congress,

00:53and the Democratic Women's Caucus is 96 strong.

00:58Women now make up more than 58 percent of college graduates,

01:0240 percent of all businesses are women-owned,

01:06and more than 52 Fortune 500 companies are led by women.

01:12This kind of change did not happen by accident.

01:16It happened because our mothers, grandmothers,

01:19great-grandmothers, aunties, sisters, cousins,

01:23dared greatly and forged new paths for us to walk.

01:28The freedom and privileges we enjoy today

01:32are because of those who came before us.

01:36These are their stories.

01:39Over the next hour,

01:40we will hear from women members across the country who

01:43share the stories of heroines who changed the course of history.

01:50I'm honored to yield now to the gentle lady from North Carolina,

01:55Ms. Deborah Ross.

01:58Thank you so much, Congresswoman Scholten.

02:02I rise today to honor former Ambassador Jeanette Hyde,

02:07who sadly passed away last month.

02:10A North Carolina native,

02:13Ambassador Hyde was a trailblazer who

02:16paved the path for generations of women in our state.

02:21Her contributions to our community span industries,

02:26from her time as a social worker and teacher,

02:29to serving as the first woman on the North Carolina Board of Transportation.

02:36She was an active philanthropist,

02:39never forgetting her roots,

02:41and always giving back to North Carolina causes and organizations.

02:48It's especially meaningful to celebrate her legacy during Women's History Month.

02:55As a leader and an influential advocate,

02:59she pushed for ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment,

03:03and women's full participation in the political process.

03:08She never gave up on her vision of an America where

03:13every woman has a chance to make her voice heard.

03:18At a time when women are facing

03:21unprecedented attacks from the Trump administration,

03:25we should all seek to emulate Ambassador Hyde's grit and grace over the next four years.

03:35Like Jeanette, we cannot back down in the face of threats to women's health care,

03:43accessible childcare, equal pay, and more.

03:48Thank you, Madam Chair, and I yield back.

03:54Thank you, Ms. Ross.

03:56I now yield to the gentle lady from Minnesota, Dr. Morrison.

04:05Thank you. Mr. Speaker,

04:08as we recognize Women's History Month,

04:10I rise as an OBGYN in fierce defense of our nation's moms and babies.

04:16Right now, the Republican majority in Congress is launching a full attack on America's families.

04:23Let's start first with where we are in our country.

04:26We are facing a serious and worsening maternal health care crisis.

04:30Just look at this map.

04:32In more than half of our country,

04:34women do not have a place to go that provides obstetric care.

04:38Among peer nations, we have both the highest rate of maternal deaths

04:41and the highest rate of infant deaths.

04:44In the United States of America, this is a crisis.

04:48It is an unacceptable crisis, and it demands immediate action from our nation's legislators.

04:55And yet the Republican majority is shoving a budget through that would gut Medicaid,

05:00which is the single largest payer of maternity care in our country,

05:04in order to give tax cuts to billionaires.

05:07As an OBGYN who has spent my life caring for women and delivering babies,

05:12let me tell you it is unconscionable to threaten the care women receive

05:16before, during, and after pregnancy.

05:19But that's exactly what the Republican majority is doing with their budget.

05:24Republicans are choosing to shut down more hospitals and clinics across the country.

05:29Republicans are choosing to make even more of our country maternal care deserts.

05:34Republicans are choosing to take health care away from moms and babies.

05:40It does not have to be this way.

05:43So as we celebrate Women's History Month, I implore the Republican majority

05:47to make their policy match their pro-family rhetoric

05:50and choose to put America's moms and babies first.

05:55Thank you. I yield back.

05:59Thank you, Dr. Morrison.

06:01Clearly, Women's History Month is still,

06:05history is still being made this Women's History Month

06:08as we have an unprecedented number of changemaker women

06:12from across the country who are standing up and fiercely defending their constituents.

06:18We are so grateful for their work in Congress.

06:23I now yield to the gentlelady from Maryland,

06:28Representative Sarah Ellsworth.

06:33Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

06:35Commander Janie L. Mines,

06:38the first African-American woman to graduate from the U.S. Naval Academy in 1980.

06:43Commander Christine Holderede, a Howard County native

06:46and the first woman to graduate as valedictorian,

06:49not only from the Naval Academy, but from any service academies in 1984.

06:56Midshipman Kristen Dickman, a Naval Academy freshman and volleyball player

07:00who tragically passed away at the age of 19 in 2008.

07:05Her memory is now honored every single year for over the last decade

07:10via a tournament in her honor.

07:13Midshipman First Class Sydney Barber,

07:15the Naval Academy's first African-American female brigade commander

07:19who earned that honor not even five years ago in 2020.

07:24I share these names and I share these stories

07:27because these are women and women of color

07:29who are an integral part of the rich history of the United States Naval Academy

07:34that I have the privilege of representing,

07:35but not just of the Naval Academy.

07:38They represent our military and proudly our nation.

07:42And so I want to be clear that this administration's unrelenting

07:45and reckless attack on the stories and the history of persistence,

07:50of diversity, of opportunity only serves to set us back.

07:55When faculty at our five world-class service academies

07:58are told to avoid divisive concepts like racism and sexism,

08:04that only threatens to erase the stories and experiences

08:08of these brave women who just wanted to serve our great nation.

08:12I strongly believe that the Navy and Marine Corps that look,

08:15we should have a Navy and Marine Corps who look like our country,

08:19where our midshipmen receive an education

08:21that teaches the accurate and full history of this nation,

08:25where the stories of women and people of color

08:27aren't skipped over because they are inconvenient.

08:31This is all critical to our national security

08:33and a strong democratic principles that we embody abroad.

08:37It is for these women and the hundreds and thousands more women

08:40serving in our nation, serving our nation at home and abroad

08:43that I am here today.

08:45And with that, I yield back my time.

08:48Thank you, Representative Alfreff.

08:51Very, very well said.

08:54As the first woman in history to hold my seat in Congress,

08:58I am always thinking about the history-making women

09:02of the past, present, and future.

09:06I'm honored to highlight a few stories

09:08of history-making women Michiganders now.

09:13I'm honored to highlight Michigander Harriet Quimby,

09:16the first American woman to earn a pilot's license

09:20and the first woman ever to fly solo across the English Channel.

09:25Her career in aviation was short but accomplished.

09:29Flying from the U.S. to England, Mexico, and more,

09:32Harriet's legacy serves as a reminder

09:35that women can soar to whatever heights they set their mind to.

09:41We are so proud to claim that Sojourner Truth

09:44made her home in Michigan for the last 27 years of her life,

09:49a fearless abolitionist and a women's rights advocate

09:53who used her powerful voice to demand justice.

09:57Born into slavery, she escaped and dedicated her life

10:00to fighting for freedom and equality.

10:05Her famous Ain't I a Woman speech

10:07challenged the exclusion of Black women

10:10from the suffrage movement, leaving a legacy

10:12that continues to inspire generations.

10:18Anna Howard Shaw was a trailblazer

10:21in every sense of the word,

10:23becoming one of the first female ordained ministers

10:27in the United States and later a physician.

10:30She dedicated decades to the fight for women's suffrage,

10:34serving as the president

10:35of the National American Women's Suffrage Association.

10:39Her leadership and relentless advocacy

10:41helped secure the right to vote,

10:43proving that determination and conviction,

10:47as well as persistence, can change the course of history.

10:53Clara Arthur, known as the mother of the playground movement,

10:57believed in creating a better world for future generations.

11:02As president of the Michigan Equal Suffrage Association,

11:05she worked tirelessly to advocate for women's voting rights.

11:10Her activism extended beyond the ballot box.

11:13She championed education, labor reforms,

11:16and public spaces for children,

11:19ensuring that progress didn't just mean progress for some,

11:24it meant progress for all.

11:27Lucia Voorhees Grimes was a dedicated suffragist

11:31who played a pivotal role in Michigan's fight

11:34for women's voting rights.

11:36As a leader in the Michigan Equal Suffrage Association,

11:40she traveled the state, organizing campaigns,

11:44educating voters, and pushing for legislative change.

11:48Her unwavering commitment helped pave the way

11:52for Michigan women to claim their rightful place

11:56in the democratic process.

12:00These are the stories of past history makers

12:03who have changed the course of our nation.

12:07The freedoms we enjoy today

12:09are because they refused to sit idly by.

12:13And now, as we see unprecedented attacks

12:16on our healthcare, on our rights,

12:19we also see everyday women,

12:22especially in places like my hometown

12:25in Grand Rapids, Michigan, who refuse to sit quiet.

12:31I refuse to stand by while Republicans,

12:34Donald Trump, and billionaires like Elon Musk

12:37try to gut essential programs like Medicaid,

12:41a lifeline that millions of families rely on.

12:45No parent should have to choose

12:47between their child's health and paying their bills.

12:51We are fighting to protect the care

12:53that women and families depend on

12:55because healthcare isn't a privilege for the wealthy.

12:58It's a right for everyone.

13:02I wanna highlight to you a brave mom

13:04from my district, Abby Karoma,

13:07a mother of two visually impaired daughters

13:09who depend on Medicaid.

13:12Without this critical program,

13:13Abby would be forced to make impossible decisions,

13:16whether she has enough in her bank account

13:18for treatments that could save her children's vision

13:23or putting food on the table.

13:25No parent should have to face that choice.

13:30But Republicans in Congress right now,

13:32guided by Donald Trump and Elon Musk,

13:35are willing to rip away this essential healthcare

13:39from families like Abby's

13:40just to hand out more tax cuts to the ultra-wealthy.

13:43We won't let it happen.

13:45We are the women who are standing in the gap

13:47and standing up for these families.

13:49We will fight every day to protect Medicaid,

13:52to stand up for families who depend on it,

13:54and to make sure that no one in this country

13:57is left wondering whether they can afford

14:01the care that they need for themselves or their families.

14:05I stand here today so that no one has to wonder

14:08who they have fighting for them.

14:10We are here, standing together,

14:12fighting for the families across the country.

14:16Thank you to the women who joined me here today

14:18to stand up and highlight the powerful women

14:21of their home states and the impacts

14:23that they have had on changing the course of history.

14:28Mr. Speaker, I yield back.

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