Smithsonian Women's History Museum Act

Floor Speech

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Mrs. WAGNER. Madam Speaker, I thank my friend and colleague from across the river in Illinois. I have the great privilege of representing Missouri's Second Congressional District, and he is a leader in this Congress, but most of all, he is a wonderful friend and colleague.

Madam Speaker, I also commend my good friend, Congresswoman Carolyn Maloney from New York. We have worked in a bipartisan fashion on so many issues, especially when it comes to the scourge of human trafficking, violence against women, taking care of the most vulnerable in our society. I thank her for her commitment.

Madam Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 1980, the Smithsonian Women's History Museum Act. This important bill will honor the immense contributions that women have made to our country by establishing the first national women's history museum.

Women from my hometown of St. Louis have a proud history of service and heroism. During the First World War, a brave group of St. Louis women volunteered to go to war-torn France to start a hospital for injured Allied soldiers. They were among the first Americans to deploy to Europe and some of the very last to leave. When they departed for France in May 1917, the United States had not even entered the war, and many remained in France for a year after the armistice. They treated more than 60,000 patients before they returned home to St. Louis.

Through their courage, ingenuity, determination, and integrity, American women have been instrumental in the growth of the United States as a global force for good. I am so proud that their stories will be remembered for the next generation of women leaders.

Madam Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this bipartisan piece of legislation.

Mr. RODNEY DAVIS of Illinois. Madam Speaker, I have no further speakers, and I am prepared to close.

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