Washington - U.S. Senators Robert Menendez (D-NJ) and Senator Frank R. Lautenberg (D-NJ) today introduced a resolution to posthumously award Alice Paul the Congressional Gold Medal. Paul, a New Jersey native, led the successful effort to introduce and pass the 19th Amendment and was a tireless advocate of women's rights around the world. On this day 94 years ago, Paul began her hunger strike in protest of inequal rights for women. Current cosponsors of this resolution are: Senators Lautenberg, Stabenow, Gillibrand, McCaskill, Boxer, Akaka, Begich, Mikulski, Klobuchar and Collins.

"Alice Paul was someone who, quite simply, made history happen. She fought tirelessly for a cause she believed in. Now it is my chance to fight for something I believe in, and that is to honor a woman who represents American democracy in its purest form," Menendez said. "On October 20th, 1917, Alice Paul went on a hunger strike to protest for women's rights. That was ninety four years ago, and now is the time to show our appreciation. Her legacy opens the door not only to women, but to everyone looking for equal opportunity. The Congressional Gold Medal is the least we can do to honor a woman who made history happen, and in the process changed our nation forever."

"Alice Paul is among New Jerseys' proudest daughters, but she is also a national pioneer that paved the way for women's rights in America,"said Lautenberg. "It is because of Alice Paul's courage and leadership that American women have the right to vote and have become a powerful voice in the United States and around the world. Alice Paul is an inspiring American figure that is deserving of the Congressional Gold Medal."

Valerie Buickerwood, Executive Director of the Alice Paul Institute, had this to say about the pending legislation: "The Alice Paul Institute is delighted that Senator Menendez is sponsoring and Senator Lautenberg cosponsoring the Alice Paul Congressional Gold Medal Act and excited by the possibility of Alice receiving national recognition as an American heroine. Her dedication to expanding the rights expressed in our Constitution to one half the population is no less significant than that of our nation's founders'. National recognition of her achievements for women's suffrage and civil rights is a solid step toward raising awareness for the need to complete her life's mission:achieving full equality for all citizens with the ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment."

Alice Paul is perhaps best known for leading the fight to add the 19th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, giving women the right to vote. The Mount Laurel native and devout Quaker led one of the first groups to ever picket the White House and later embarked on a three-week hunger strike with her fellow suffragists when they were arrested for their cause.

After the 19th Amendment was ratified, Ms. Paul worked for women's rights around the world. She helped to secure gender equality in the U.N. Charter, helped establish the U.N. Commission on the Status of Women and successfully lobbied Congress to include sex discrimination in Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. She is also the author of the Equal Rights Amendment and worked tirelessly for its passage until her death in 1977. Both senators have cosponsored the ERA.

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