Brooklyn, N.Y. – Congresswoman Yvette D. Clarke released the following statement in honor of Women’s Equality Day, commemorating the Ninety-Fifth Anniversary of the ratification of the Nineteenth Amendment, which protects the right of women to vote.

“The ratification of the Nineteenth Amendment was critical to the effort to secure for women the full blessings of American life. That effort continues today, as we work to eliminate the disparity in wages between men and women, establish paid family leave as a right guaranteed to every worker, and expand the participation of women in business and government.  We must also remember that for millions of American women the right to vote remains under attack by state legislatures that have enacted voter identification laws, restricted early voting, and removed the names of eligible voters from registration lists – entirely for the purpose of disenfranchising African American and Latino women.  As we celebrate Women’s Equality Day and the Nineteenth Amendment, let us resolve to pursue  full equality for every American, particularly those women who are still denied the right to participate in our civil society.”

Congresswoman Yvette D. Clarke is a member of the Committee on Energy and Commerce in the House of Representatives, a member of the Subcommittee on Commerce, Manufacturing, and Trade, the Subcommittee on Communications and Technology, and the Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations, as well as the Committee on Ethics and the Committee of Small Business. She represents many neighborhoods in central and southern Brooklyn, NY which include Brownsville, Crown Heights, East Flatbush, Flatbush, Gerritsen Beach, Madison, Midwood, parts of Park Slope and Flatlands, Prospect Heights, Prospect-Lefferts Gardens, Sheepshead Bay, and Windsor Terrace.