Press Release
Leading Women’s Organization Honors House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi

When women are stronger, families are stronger and the nation is stronger. That was the message at the National Partnership for Women & Families’ Annual Luncheon, held at the Washington Hilton Hotel on Thursday. The event honored House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi (D – Calif.) for her lifelong work to make life better for America’s women and families. The National Partnership has been working for more than 40 years to make the country more healthy, fair and family friendly.

“For decades, Leader Pelosi has been a tireless and extraordinary leader in fighting for policies that will assure that women’s success and their families’ well-being are not hindered by outdated policies and unequal opportunity,” said National Partnership President Debra L. Ness. “She has been an outspoken and highly effective champion for the health and economic security of women and families. We are truly fortunate to have such a visionary leader in Congress. Her women’s economic agenda is exactly what the nation needs.”

Hundreds of prominent congressional and women leaders, legal and corporate supporters, and activists turned out to celebrate Leader Pelosi on the heels of the White House Summit on Working Families, which took place on Monday and focused on many of the policies included in her agenda: ‘When Women Succeed, America Succeeds.’ Pelosi discussed the challenges facing America’s families and the country, as well as the common sense solutions she has been working to advance, including family friendly workplace supports, fair pay, measures to combat pay and pregnancy discrimination, and child care.

Other speakers at the event were Ellen Malcolm, chair of the boards of directors of EMILY’s List and the National Partnership, and MSNBC’s Karen Finney, who emceed the event.

America’s women and families need and deserve a nation where no worker has to choose between job and family, where people can earn a living without suffering discrimination, and where everyone has access to quality, affordable health care, Ness said. She talked in-depth about the need to advance programs and policies that promote equal opportunity, paid family and medical leave, paid sick days, and quality, affordable health care, including comprehensive reproductive health services.

“Fairness for women and families is not a burden for businesses, it is a boon – for businesses and our economy,” Ness said at the event. “When women succeed, families are stronger, communities thrive, businesses do better, and our whole nation benefits. This is not rhetoric. It’s reality. And it has been proven over and over and over again. Each time in our history when we’ve made progress, workers became more secure and job growth increased. Those who say otherwise don’t have the facts on their side. Economic growth doesn’t come from treating workers as replaceable cogs in a wheel of profit enjoyed by only a few. The opposite is true. Every step of the way in America’s journey, we have seen that strengthening women and families unleashes economic growth and opportunity.”

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About the National Partnership for Women & Families

The National Partnership for Women & Families is a nonprofit, nonpartisan advocacy group dedicated to promoting fairness in the workplace, reproductive health and rights, access to quality, affordable health care and policies that help all people meet the dual demands of work and family.

More information is available at NationalPartnership.org.

For general inquiries, please email press@nationalpartnership.org.