51 Women Senators?

"51 Women Senators ?" from the intro: 51% of the U.S. population is female. For the U.S. Senate to have proportional gender equity would mean 51 women in the Senate chamber. At present there are 17. There are 75 women who are members of the House of Representatives(17%), and 17 women in the Senate(17%). If we were to achieve true representative government that is statistically accurate we would have 14 Hispanics and 13 African Americans in the Senate......and we would have 51 women Senators. Are we headed for 51? Yes, we think so. As late as 1992 there were only 2 women in the Senate and today's 17 members is an all-time high, so continuing to grow at that rate could get us to 51% somewhere between 2035 and 2050. Remember, men have been running for office and being elected since 1789 and women only since about 1920, but women are catching up. from Chapter One: Just imagine, until 1993 there wasn’t a bathroom in the Senate for women members; they had to use the facilities on the floor below them while their male colleagues were within several feet of a latrine.1 (If you think this seems a minor ceremonial point, try working somewhere where you are always required to use a bathroom on a different floor for a week or so, and then come back to report on the matter.) The lack of a bathroom reflected the attitude of some about women Senators: there weren’t many of them and they didn’t much matter. And in fact as late as 1992 only two women were serving in the Senate; Nancy Kassebaum, a Republican from Kansas, and Barbara Mikulski, a Democrat, from Maryland. from Chapter Two: There is a certain difficulty in writing about Rebecca Latimer Felton, though her historical significance cannot be discounted. She holds not one, not two, but three distinctions; she was not only the first woman to ever serve in the Senate, but at the age of 87 years old, she was the oldest freshman senator ever to enter the Senate. Also, she is to this day the only woman Senator from the state of Georgia. She was a strong voice for woman’s emancipation and a well respected lecturer in her time. But Rebecca Felton was also a fervent believer in racial segregation who forcefully defended lynching! It’s a rarely spoken but true fact that members of a discriminated group (which Felton as a woman who lived 80 years of adult life in a time when women were denied the vote and could remember a time when women did not even have the right to property within their own name certainly was,) are not themselves inured from prejudices. from Chapter Four: It’s always been customary for people on Capitol Hill to boast of their religious piety but 51 women Senators would mean there might be more genuine sincerity behind the posturing. 71% of women cite religion as very important to them but only 55% of men. Women attend church service much more frequently than men do as well; almost half of all women ages 30-49 attend church while only a third of men that age do. Women are more likely to participate in prayer or bible study groups than men and to engage in church based volunteer work as well.1 The participants in midweek church activities are 70-80% women.2 Christian universities now enroll almost two women for every man3 and reform seminaries that school future rabbis are now 60% female. Quotes: “Gender equality is critical to the development and peace of every nation.” - Kofi Annan, Secretary General to the UN “There will never be complete equality until women themselves help to make laws and elect lawmakers.” - Susan B. Anthony “Whether women are better than men I cannot say-but I can certainly say they are no worse.” - Golda Meir, former Prime Minister of Israel “I have long believed that taxpayers make better use of their money than the government ever could.” - Kay Bailey Hutchison “Really life is complicated enough without having a bunch of Senators decide what we should do in the privacy of our own homes.” - Barbara Boxer “Taking the time to read to children is not only a worthwhile investment but also a wonderful experience. I have visited 119 schools in Maine, and these visits are among the most rewarding experiences in my career of public service.” - Susan Collins from Chapter Five: On the horizon in 2010 there are 36 Senate elections. 6 of the current women Senators' terms will expire then: Barbara Boxer, Barbara Mikulski, Blanche Lincoln, Lisa Murkowski, Patty Murray, and Kristen Gillibrand. Gillibrand was appointed to replace Senator Hillary Clinton after Hillary's move to be Secretary of State, so she will be running for election for the first time. Murkowski, Lincoln, and Boxer have plans to run for re-election. Mikulski and Murray have not made announcements to run as yet. In Ohio, Republican Senator George Voinovich is retiring and there will be contenders from both parties hoping to be his replacement. At least one woman has declared her candidacy, Democrat Jennifer Brunner who is Ohio's current Secretary of State. There is also a possibility that Ohio Congresswoman Marcy Kaptur may run for the Senate after 27 years in the House. There are 10 of the other states where more women may contend and perhaps add to the number of women in the Senate. 2010 will be a interesting year to see how many female incumbents retain their seats, how many retire, and how many new women reach the position of U.S. Senator. It will be difficult for women to gain seats over the existing number of 17 if several incumbent women retire.