By Rep. Pam Gulleson (D-Rutland) On Jan. 4, 2007, over 200 years after the birth of this great nation and nearly 87 years after ratifying the 19th amendment providing women the right to vote, Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) has been elected to serve as this nation’s first female Speaker of the House. I hope that we all, regardless of our individual political leanings or gender, take a moment to reflect and appreciate the significance of this event

From the kitchen tables to the boardroom tables and from the grain fields to the military fields, women have worked and walked beside men in building this great nation. Yet, joining these same men in the seats of leadership has been a long and difficult road.

Through the election of Speaker Pelosi, we have firmly acknowledged, as a nation, that the participation, service and leadership of all citizens, regardless of gender, is possible

North Dakotan’s can take special pride in its own history of electing women to serve as leaders in the state House. In 1933, Representative Minnie Craig (Esmond, N.D.), was elected to serve as the Speaker of the North Dakota House of Representatives. She was the first female in the nation to serve in such a position. Unfortunately, it took an additional fifty years to elect our second female speaker, Tish Kelly (Fargo, N.D.), in 1983. Two decades later, we elected our third female, Janet Wentz (Minot, N.D.), to the speaker position. I had the honor of serving with Representatives Kelly and Wentz in the North Dakota House. These amazing women exemplified leadership and were strong role models for all of us who had the privilege of serving with them. As a nation, we need to continuously challenge ourselves in areas of inclusion and acceptance. This week’s events give me renewed belief that we truly are a country that stands on equality and opportunity for all. | save this article / add to your favorites list