This is an archive page.  The links are no longer being updated.

REMARKS BY:  DONNA E. SHALALA, SECRETARY OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
PLACE: American Association of University Women Conference of State Presidents, Washington, D.C.
DATE: JUNE 29, 1998

It's always a great pleasure to see old friends.

And certainly, AAUW has been an old friend of mine, my Department, and our efforts on behalf of women, families and children.

Let me start by sharing a piece of good news with you.

Just in case you haven't heard yet, the President has nominated Dr. Jane Henney to be the new Comissioner of the FDA.

Dr. Henney is uniquely qualified for this position. She served as Deputy Comissioner of the FDA under Dr. David Kessler, and more recently as an Administrator at the University of New Mexico.

She is a world-renowned oncologist, who has spent her life making a difference -- through medicine and public health, in government and academia.

When she is confirmed by the Senate, she will be the first woman to ever serve as FDA commissioner.

I can't think of anybody better able to lead the FDA into the next century, and better able to be an advocate and guardian for health and well being of all Americans.

I am very much looking forward to working with her -- just as soon as we can get her through the Senate confirmation.

To me, Dr. Henney embodies the qualities that AAUW promotes and the principles that you stand on: qualified, committed and pioneering.

For over a century, you've been a crucial voice for women, for equity, and for the rights of girls and women in schools and in academia.

And, there's no question about it, your hard work and you advocacy have helped advance the cause of all women in our society.

It is no wonder that today, you have so many friends, and so many former members - myself included - now serving in the Administration.

Times are changing for women in government -- not just at HHS. Women in all parts of the Clinton Administration have reshaped the political landscape.

There are more women in the courts - a third of all of President Clinton's judicial nominees.

There are more women in charge - 41 percent of all of President Clinton's political appointments.

There are more women in the cabinet. Madeleine at State, Janet at Justice, Alexis at Labor, Carol at EPA;
Aida Alvarez at SBA, Janet Yellen, Chair of the Council of Economic Advisors;
And, Charlene Barshevsky, our United States Trade Representative.

And of course, we have two very remarkable women at the White House. Tipper Gore, who you'll hear from next;
And First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton, with whom I've spent most of my adult life working to make sure no child is left behind.

All these women in charge bring the values and principles of the AAUW to national concerns - and along with that, a unique way of looking at the world.

It's a perspective that sees women not as a separate or special interest - but as a central interest, crucial to every policy and program that comes before us: From higher education to environment. From international trade to health care.

I'm proud to be part of an Administration that has done so much to lift the lives of women, children and families.

We've transformed women's issues into national issues - and brought them from the back burner to the front stage.

We have stood strong in our support of affirmative action, and to keep the President's promise to "mend it - not end it."

We have invested in women's education and training by providing Hope scholarships, Lifetime Learning Tax Credits, and an increase in Pell Grants.

With your help, we expanded women's economic opportunities by passing the Family Medical Leave Act.

We've helped working families succeed by: raising the Minimum Wage;
expanding the Earned Income Tax Credit.
And, yes, by building a strong economy, with unemployment, inflation and interest rates all down -- and, wages, job creation and home ownership all up.

We've protected our families, by putting more police on the streets; banning assault weapons; and providing new laws and shelters to protect women against violence.

We've done all of this, remarkably, in just the last five years. But has it been enough? Of course not.

We're not done when millions of parents still can't find and afford child care they can trust.

We're not done when millions of families are denied their right to quality health care they can trust.

We're not done when millions of communities still can't provide the best public schools our children -- and our nation -- need to thrive in the 21st Century.

And we're not done when 3000 children a day become regular smokers -- and 1000 will die prematurely as a result -- until Congress musters the concern and the courage to pass comprehensive tobacco legislation.

But we're also not done -- as you know -- when girls today remain at risk.

As you know, a consortium of universities and research centers has just released a report they appropriately called, "The Girls Report."

Its conclusions were surprising.

It said that girls are closing the gap in some areas - but it wasn't necessarily good news.

For example, today, girls are just as likely to do well in math and science as boys. But they are almost as likely to smoke, drink, use drugs as boys.

Although girls are participating in sports more than ever before, they still lag far, far behind boys.

Obviously, the picture is mixed. Girls are catching up on some areas, but are these the areas we want them to catch up in?

The AAUW can probably elaborate on some of these findings from your own pioneering research.

In fact, I'll be eagerly anticipating your report on girls in schools which I understand will be released this fall.

But we can't wait to take action. Because there are many things that we do know about girls today.

We know that the challenges faced by girls in this generation are different than those in the past.

We know that too many girls today navigate through the painful minefields of adolescence alone, without any guidance or support.

Most of you have probably spoken to teenage girls about these issues personally at your "Sister to Sister" Summits.

You understand that too many girls today once full of resilience and promise enter the second decade of their lives without the strength that got them there.

And, you understand that to many girls today, words like body image, sexual harassment, school violence, drug abuse and teen pregnancy are not simply "issues" to discuss - they are a crisis to live through.

They are epidemics to survive. And, they are the dangers that threaten their futures and their very lives.

We don't have to wait to take action. We can't wait to take action.

Recently, when I went to New York City to participate in Principals for a Day, I asked a room full of school children what it would take to protect them from tobacco. And a young girl stood up and said, "Make me stronger inside."

Girls need us to make them stronger. They want us to make them stronger.

That's why my Department is continuing to champion our Girl Power! campaign. As you may know, it's a multi-phased, multi-media campaign designed to help 9-14 year old girls make the most of their lives.

Our goal is to reinforce positive values: In other words, we are not just giving them something to say no to
We are also giving them something to say YES to:
Yes to physical fitness, education, and setting goals and aspirations.

But government will never be able to do it alone. We need communities and churches; parents, teachers, coaches and every single person who cares about young people to join hands to protect our children. We all need to give girls strength, to give them resilience and Girl Power!

That's why with our Girl Power Campaign we are teaming up with various organizations to get the message out to young women:
Everybody from U.S. Soccer Federation to the WNBA ...
From Girl Scouts to Hadassah, and AAUW itself. Our partners and our efforts are still growing.

Because we can't be complacent about this challenge: it's about our future. Think about it: Somewhere a girl is looking in the mirror today. What will she see? Will she know that her health and future are more important than her image? That the size of her ambition is more important than the size of her clothes? That the dreams she creates for herself are more important than those created for her by others?

Somewhere I saved a poem written by a 9 year-old named Cherlnell. It's called, "What makes me feel powerful." She says "When I get an A+ or an A on a test. When people tell me I will become something big. That's what makes me feel powerful. Strong willed is independent and brave. And, I'll stay like that forever."

It is our job to ensure that every girl in this country "stays like that forever." With the AAUW leading the way, I know we will.