PAWTUCKET, RI – To celebrate Women’s Equality Day, which occurred this week and marks the day the 19th Amendment was ratified, finally granting women the right to vote, U.S. Congressman David N. Cicilline (D-RI) today held a roundtable discussion in Providence on women’s equality with women business owners and women’s rights advocates at the Center for Women & Enterprise.

“94 years after the ratification of the 19th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution the women’s rights movement has made tremendous gains, but with women on average still earning only 77 cents for every dollar a man makes, the fight for full equality continues,” said Cicilline. “I was pleased to hear from today’s roundtable participants who stressed the importance of equal opportunity for all women, and I will share their thoughts with my colleagues in Washington.”

“We are celebrating 51 years of the signing of the Equal Pay Act and in the decades since, women have made extraordinary progress. However, there is still a great amount of work that needs to be done. That is why our mission at the Center for Women & Enterprise is to provide opportunities for women entrepreneurs and women in business to increase professional success, personal growth and financial independence,” said Center for Women & Enterprise Senior Program Manager Carmen Diaz-Jusino.

Tuesday, August 26, marked Women’s Equality Day, which Congress established in 1979  to recognize the day on which the 19th Amendment was approved and gave women the right to vote in 1920. During the roundtable discussion, Cicilline heard directly from Rhode Island women and also highlight parts of the Democratic “Middle Class Jumpstart” plan that promote economic and health security of women and their families, including:

• Raising the minimum wage, with nearly two-thirds of minimum wage workers being women.
• Paid sick leave.
• Affordable child care.
• Increasing access to quality early childhood learning.
• Expanding women’s access to comprehensive health care and family planning.

In Congress, Cicilline co-sponsored the Paycheck Fairness Act so that women have the tools they need to fight wage discrimination; the Family and Medical Insurance Leave Act to ensure that American workers no longer have to choose between a paycheck and caring for themselves or a family member; and helped strengthen the Violence Against Women Act and expand women’s access to comprehensive health care and family planning.