00 HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 14                                                                                         
01 Relating to the National Museum of Women's History and the National Museum                                              
02 of Women's History Alaska Council.                                                                                      
03 BE IT RESOLVED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA:                                                              
04  WHEREAS knowledge of one's heritage and a pride in past accomplishments are                                          
05 critical to developing a personal and collective sense of competence and potential; and                                 
06  WHEREAS the historical contributions of women to civilization and to our nation                                      
07 have gone unrecognized or are misunderstood, leaving a gap in our nation's historical record;                           
08 and                                                                                                                     
09  WHEREAS  a National Museum of Women's History is needed to profile the specific                                      
10 achievements that individual women have made to all aspects of human endeavor and to                                    
11 explore and celebrate the contributions that women have made in their various roles in family                           
12 and society; and                                                                                                        
13  WHEREAS, for the first time in our nation's history, the founders of the Women's                                     
14 Suffrage Movement are being honored in the United States Capitol Rotunda due in large part                              
01 to the efforts of the National Museum of Women's History, which raised $85,000 and                                      
02 generated public support to move a statue of Lucretia Mott, Elizabeth Stanton, and Susan B.                             
03 Anthony to the rotunda after 76 years of storage in the Capitol; and                                                    
04  WHEREAS the National Museum of Women's History is a nonpartisan, nonprofit,                                          
05 educational institution dedicated to preserving and celebrating the many contributions and                              
06 diverse heritage of women throughout history; and                                                                       
07  WHEREAS legislation has been introduced and bipartisan support has been gained in                                    
08 the United States Congress to provide space in an existing federal building in Washington,                              
09 D.C., for the National Museum of Women's History; and                                                                   
10  WHEREAS the National Museum of Women's History is expected to serve 2,500,000                                        
11 visitors each year when it is located in Washington, D.C., and to serve many millions more                              
12 with its traveling exhibits and cyber museum;                                                                           
13  BE IT RESOLVED that the Alaska State Legislature urges the United States Congress                                    
14 to establish an advisory committee on the National Museum of Women's History to oversee                                 
15 a study to identify an appropriate location for the museum and to develop a business plan for                           
16 the museum's operation and maintenance, which will be funded solely through private                                     
17 contributions by the American people; and be it                                                                         
18  FURTHER RESOLVED that the Alaska State Legislature urges public support for                                          
19 the National Museum of Women's History Alaska Council, a branch of the National Museum                                  
20 of Women's History, being established in Alaska in its efforts to preserve and celebrate the                            
21 achievements of Alaska women and to raise private funds to create a cyber exhibit on Alaska                             
22 women.                                                                                                                  
23  COPIES of this resolution shall be sent to Karen Staser, President, National Museum                                  
24 of Women's History; and to the Honorable Ted Stevens and the Honorable Frank Murkowski,                                 
25 U.S. Senators, and the Honorable Don Young, U.S. Representative, members of the Alaska                                  
26 delegation in Congress.