Adam Schiff: “I rise today in honor of International Women's Day. More than 30 years ago, March 8 was designated by the United Nations…”

“I rise today in honor of International Women's Day. More than 30 years ago, March 8 was designated by the United Nations as a day to reflect upon women's struggle for equality, justice, peace and development. In the decades since, International Women's Day has become a holiday in many countries around the world, and acts as an annual catalyst for the advancement of women. Throughout our history, the United States has been a leader in advancing women's rights and opportunity. While much work remains here and abroad, I join many of my colleagues and constituents in saluting the contributions of women around the world. Many of those contributions have been made through the recent election of women political leaders. Chile, Jamaica, Germany and Liberia have all elected women to head their governments in the past 6 months. Despite this encouraging trend, governments led by women remain an anomaly. Only 11 out of the more than 200 members of the United Nations have women leaders. Moreover, there remains persistent underrepresentation of women serving as legislators, parliamentarians, and government ministers. Globally, women hold only 16 percent of all seats, a disappointing increase of only 5 percent since 1975. The 109th U.S. Congress boasts 84 female Members, the highest number in our history, but women still make up only 6.4 percent of the membership of the House and Senate, well below the world's average.…”