Ronald Reagan's Proclamation of Women's
History Month, 1987
by ReadWorks
women's suffrage parade in New York City, May 1912
The first proclamation of Women's History Month was signed by Ronald
Reagan in 1987. The following is the text of that proclamation.
From earliest times, women have helped shape our Nation. Historians today stress all that women
have meant to our national life, but the rest of us too should remember, with pride and gratitude, the
achievements of women throughout American history.
Those achievements span the wide range of human endeavor. They have not been attained without
the quiet courage and sacrifice of millions of women, some famed, most not. Women have
established themselves in business and the professions, and today women outnumber men as
undergraduates at our colleges and universities. Women have fought for moral and social reform and
have taken part in and led many great social and political movements of our land. Women have
founded many of our philanthropic, cultural, educational, and charitable institutions. Women have
served our Nation with valor and distinction during wartime, nursing the wounded, piloting airplanes,
performing vital jobs in defense plants. Women have forged a place for themselves in public life,
serving on the Supreme Court, in the Congress, and in Cabinet posts; becoming Ambassadors; and
holding Federal Executive posts that affect the lives of every citizen.
Most importantly, as women take part in the world of work, they also continue to embrace and nurture
the family as they have always done. All Americans can be truly grateful for the role of women as the
heart of the family and for their every accomplishment today and throughout our history.
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Ronald Reagan's Proclamation of Women's History Month, 1987
The Congress, by Senate Joint Resolution 20, has designated the month of March 1987 as "Women's
History Month" and authorized and requested the President to issue a proclamation in observance of
this event.
Now, Therefore, I, Ronald Reagan, President of the United States of America, do hereby proclaim
March 1987 as Women's History Month. I call upon all Americans to mark this month with appropriate
observances to honor the achievements of American women.
In Witness Whereof, I have hereunto set my hand this sixteenth day of March, in the year of our Lord
nineteen hundred and eighty-seven, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two
hundred and eleventh.
What is the organizational pattern used by the author?(1 point)
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