The President’s Commission on the Celebration of Women in American History met this past Thursday and Friday in Washington, DC to formulate recommendations to President Clinton regarding how best to acknowledge and celebrate the roles and accomplishments of women.
The celebration will reach out at four levels: national, local, organizational, and popular culture. Representatives from various women’s organizations gave testimony to the Commission, suggesting what recommendations should be made to the President.
Eleanor Smeal, President of the Feminist Majority Foundation, testified that the Commission “must seek ample funding to accurately recount the achievements of women and of the women’s movement — despite overwhelming odds — so that future generations of women can be prepared to ultimately realize the dream of full equality for all.”
Dixie Horny, President of the National Women’s History Project, echoed Smeal’s comments, arguing that women’s issues suffered from “funding apartheid.”
The Commission’s report to the President is due in March. The next meeting of the Commission, which is chaired by White House Communications Director Ann Lewis, is scheduled for January 22 in Atlanta, Georgia.
