Two Senators Place Hold on Construction of National Women's History Museum

by Sarah Menkedick · 2010-10-02 10:11:00 UTC
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Change.org writer Roxann MtJoy wrote an article last week about the benefit gala Meryl Streep gave to help fund construction of the National Women's History Museum and pointed out the frustrating fact that after clearing the House of Representatives, the National Women's History Museum Act of 2009 has been gathering dust in the Senate, preventing further progress on the project.

This week, Republican senators Tom Coburn of Oklahoma and Jim DeMint of South Carolina spoke out about a hold they have placed on the bill, preventing it from passing with unanimous consent and implying a potential filibuster in the future. Their reasoning for blocking the National Women's History Museum, which would showcase the original, signed 19th amendment along tens of thousands of other artifacts central to women's history in the U.S., is that taxpayers might be asked to subsidize the museum in the future and that the museum would focus on abortion rights without "without featuring any of the many contributions of the pro-life movement in America."

The latter concern comes from the "Concerned Women for America," a concerned women's group who wrote to Senator DeMint about the museum's supposed emphasis on abortion rights, encouraging him to place the hold on the bill.

Never mind that museum CEO Joan Wages stated that an exhibit or focus on abortion rights has never been discussed, and added that "we are not going to do an exhibit on that issue because we have to raise $400 million. We cannot afford, literally, to focus on issues that are divisive." It seems that the senators have an issue with a museum intended for women, and for women to become aware of their rights and the history of these rights.

These senators have an unsurprisingly grim record on women's rights: both voted against an amendment that would deny defense contracts to contractors who deny their employees legal action following a sexual assault.  Both also believe that a woman should be forced to give birth to her rapist's baby: Coburn, in an irony that makes my head hurt, stated that he favors the death penalty for abortionists.

Please let these two senators know that they cannot speak for American women. Tell the Senate to pass the National Women's History Museum Act.

Photo credit: Senate Democrats

Sarah Menkedick is a freelance writer currently based in Oaxaca, Mexico. She has spent the last five years teaching, writing and traveling on five continents. She regularly writes about women's rights.
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