HR0922 LRB094 19590 HSS 55778 r

1
HOUSE RESOLUTION

 
2     WHEREAS, The members of the House of Representatives of the
3 State of Illinois learned with sadness of the death of Betty
4 Friedan, a former citizen of Illinois and pioneer of women's
5 rights in America, who passed away on February 4, 2006; and
 
6     WHEREAS, She was born Bettye Naomi Goldstein on February 4,
7 1921, in Peoria, where she spent her childhood; she later went
8 on to graduate summa cum laude from Smith College in 1942;
9 after her graduation, she studied psychology for one year at
10 the University of California Berkeley; and
 
11     WHEREAS, She was married to Carl Friedan from 1947 until
12 1969 and was blessed with three children; as a result of her
13 pregnancy in 1952, Ms. Friedan was fired from her journalism
14 job, leading her to question the way American society treated
15 women in the workforce; and
 
16     WHEREAS, During her marriage she began to work on her first
17 book, "The Feminine Mystique", a book which many site as the
18 starting point of the modern women's rights movement; her book,
19 which was simultaneously applauded and condemned, spoke to
20 women from all walks of life and addresses what she called "the
21 problem with no name", one in which women were leading the
22 lives society expected from them, but finding themselves
23 unfulfilled; and
 
24     WHEREAS, Ms. Friedan encouraged women to follow their
25 dreams, including those of work outside the home, while at the
26 same time urging people not to turn their back on their family;
27 it was her belief, a radical belief at the time, that a woman
28 could be a wife, mother, and lead a rewarding and fulfilling
29 professional life; she went on to become an accomplished
30 author, writing such books as "The Second Stage", "It Changed
31 My Life", "Writings on the Women's Movement", and "The Fountain

 

 

HR0922 - 2 - LRB094 19590 HSS 55778 r

1 of Age"; she also helped organize the National Organization of
2 Women and served as the organization's president from 1966 to
3 1970; and
 
4     WHEREAS, Women throughout America owe a debt of gratitude
5 to Betty Friedan for her pioneering leadership in the field of
6 women's rights and her adherence to the radical idea "Women are
7 people too"; therefore, be it
 
8     RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE
9 NINETY-FOURTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that
10 we mourn the passing of Betty Friedan, who championed the cause
11 of women's rights and will forever be remembered as a
12 groundbreaker for the cause, and we extend our deepest sympathy
13 to her family, friends, and all who knew and loved her; and be
14 it further
 
15     RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be
16 presented to her family as an expression of our sincerest
17 condolences for their loss.