WHEREAS,  March 8, 2011 is the 100th anniversary of International Women's Day, a global celebration of the economic, social and political achievements of women; and

WHEREAS,  women are achieving at the highest levels of economic, cultural and political life. The percentage of women working in management, business and finance jobs has increased from 9% to 14% since 1983; and

WHEREAS,  women in the United States are enrolled in greater numbers than men in both undergraduate and graduate institutions and they now comprise about 1/2 of the workforce. Women are the breadwinners or cobreadwinners in 2/3 of American households. As women's earnings have risen, so has the wellbeing of families; and

WHEREAS,  as our workforce has been transformed, so too have the highest echelons of leadership. The vast majority of Americans, 89%, describe themselves as comfortable with women as leaders in all sectors of society; and

WHEREAS,  despite this progress, significant challenges remain. There continues to be an earnings gap between women and men. At all levels of education, women earned about 75% of what their male counterparts earned in 2009, are overrepresented in lowpaying jobs, are more likely than men to live in poverty and carry disproportionate responsibility for care of children and adult family members; and

WHEREAS,  women are more likely than men to suffer from sexual victimization and intimate partner violence; and

WHEREAS,  women are significantly underrepresented in science, technology, engineering and math, which are areas of significant importance to Maine's economic development; and

WHEREAS,  we must seize the opportunity to build on our collective progress and create a future in which women and girls have every opportunity to succeed and to thrive; now, therefore, be it