National monuments in Washington, D.C., are missing a big piece of American history: women

USA TODAY | October 16, 2022

By Suzette Hackney

These women deserve to be memorialized within one of America's most prominent public spaces. Congress must step up to ensure it happens.

Jane DeDecker works on a sculpture entitled “Mill Workers” at her studio in Loveland, CO
Jon Austria/The Coloradoan

Washington's National Mall elicits chills whenever I have the chance to stroll among the powerful monuments honoring dead presidents, those who served in our armed forces and those who fought for equality and freedom for all Americans.

But there's always something missing: women.

I'm hopeful that will change soon. It must.

This week, lobbying will begin on Capitol Hill for the go-ahead to install the first outdoor memorial in the nation’s capital to honor pioneering suffragists who fought for the right of women to vote.

The Women's Suffrage National Monument Foundation was designated by Congress in 2020 to establish a monument to share the history of the early movement for women’s equality. The nonprofit will lead the effort to fund, design, develop and construct the Women's Suffrage National Monument.

Former President Donald Trump signed the bill into law right before his term ended in 2020 – the 100th anniversary of the ratification of the 19th Amendment, which gave women the right to vote in national elections. Now Congress must greenlight the project if it is to be installed on the highly restricted National Mall.