The Feminist Queries: Senator Kirsten Gillibrand

For this Feminist Query, I got the opportunity to interview Senator Kirsten Gillibrand, a New York Democrat, who was appointed to the U.S. Senate in January 2009 to fill Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's seat.

Senator Gillibrand is also a candidate competing in the 2010 November elections.  She has been endorsed by a wide range of elected officials and civic organizations, including EMILY's List, NARAL, NYSUT, Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., and nearly a dozen sitting New York Democrats in Congress.

I am very excited to share this interview with the readers of Change.org and I hope you will read it to the very bottom, where Senator Gillibrand challenges all women to run for public office!

Do you consider yourself a feminist? Why or why not?

Yes. Feminism represents a core belief that women matter and that their contributions and views are both valuable and necessary for the growth and success of families and communities. I have been blessed with strong feminist role models. My grandmother, for example, was very involved in politics in Albany and organized other women to serve the community. She inspired me to become active in politics and work on the grassroots level to elect candidates who shared our priorities.

As a young lawyer, working in New York City, I was also inspired by then-First Lady Hillary Clinton's powerful speech in China, when she said that "women's rights are human rights, and human rights are women's rights." As an Asian Studies major at Dartmouth who had traveled in China, I understood exactly what it meant for this woman leader to say those words, at that time and in that place. I have learned from her vision and commitment to helping women and children.

I have focused on women and family issues since my first term in Congress. I am committed to fair and equal pay for women in the workplace, addressing maternal mortality issues in America and abroad, and protecting reproductive rights for women. I also have legislation and a focus on safe baby products, safe drinking water, a not-for-profit option for public healthcare reform, research money for autism and childhood diabetes and school lunch investments on fruits and vegetables to fight childhood obesity.

What is it like to be a new Senator who is also the mother of a very young child? Does this unique perspective change your approach to legislation?

Well, as you might know, I was elected to Congress when Theo was 2 and I was appointed to the Senate when Henry was less than a year, so being a Member of Congress with young children is the only thing I know. But yes, I think it gives me a unique perspective when it comes to legislating. I try to have a family first agenda. Every day on every issue, I analyze how parents and children will be affected by our legislative actions, and I experience the real impact of our decisions.

How do you feel about the fact that women make up over 50% of the population, but only 17% of the Senate?

It's very disappointing, actually. It's 2009, that number should be a lot higher. I do think we've reached a point where women really can get elected at the highest levels of government all over the country. It's just a matter of seats opening up and more women running. I have no doubt that we will see more women in elected office in the coming years. In the meantime, we need to support the women candidates who are running, which is where blogs and online communities like yours come in. I really appreciate how much support there is online for what we are doing and the issues we are fighting for.

When it comes to matters of diversity, immigration is a key issue. Do you intend to be a vocal advocate for immigration reform?

Yes, absolutely. I know that our current immigration system is broken, and I am working with the Obama Administration on comprehensive reform. I support creating a real path to citizenship with accountability, and am advocating for a number of initiatives to provide immigrants in this country with education and other opportunities to thrive, including the DREAM Act, special funding for new opportunities to learn English, and changes to our visa laws to enable families to be reunited. America was built by the contributions of immigrants and our diversity only adds to the greatness of this country.

Recently, Lt. Choi was fired from the New York National Guard because of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policies. How do you plan on being an advocate for LGBT rights in the Senate?

As you may know, I met with Dan Choi in my office back in June and I expressed my strong support for the repeal of Don't Ask Don't Tell. I have written a bill to place a moratorium on enforcement of DADT for 18 months until the military and the Administration can reassess the policy. While I have yet to garner 60 votes for this bill, Chairman Levin at my request has agreed to hold the first hearings on this policy since its inception. I will also be an original co-sponsor of Senator Kennedy's bill for full repeal of DADT when he offers it. Also, I support inclusive ENDA legislation and I support repeal of the Defense of Marriage Act. And, of course, I'm a strong supporter of marriage equality. I've been excited to see several states this year move to pass marriage equality and I've urged New York's state Assembly and Senate to do the same. I really think it's the civil rights issue of our generation.

You believe in marriage equality, as do most New Yorkers. The New York State Assembly has just passed a Marriage Equality Bill, and Gov. Paterson, like you, supports it. But some of your fellow Democrats in the New York State Senate don't, and may block the bill altogether. Will you endorse or campaign for these state senate Democrats who don't share New York's values on this basic civil rights issue?

I have been very outspoken in my support for that legislation, and I have stood with state lawmakers to personally urge my colleagues in the State Senate to support the bill. I remain confident that we can pass this legislation before next year's election. Marriage Equality is the equal rights battle of our generation, and we should all be strongly united in our efforts to make progress. I will continue to be a strong advocate and work with all elected leaders to move this issue forward. I'll review all endorsements on an individual basis, however this issue will remain a fundamentally important issue affecting my view.

Finally, if you could ask women everywhere one question - what would it be?

I would ask women to consider serving their communities through elected office and other public service. I believe women in leadership can have a transformational impact on our communities and on the public policies that have the deepest impact on our families' lives. I hope my efforts will inspire women to go into public service, just as Secretary Clinton did for me many years ago.