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Assemblywoman Barbara Lifton (Dem., 125th Assembly District) held a joint press conference today with County Legislator and NYS Senate Candidate Pam Mackesey, to commemorate the 90th Anniversary of Women's Suffrage in the United States.  As women elected officials, both Assemblywoman Lifton and NYS Senate hopeful MacKesey told supporters and the media that it is important that women's voices be heard in Albany, and that can be accomplished by increasing the number of women serving in the NYS legislature.  Currently, the NYS Legislature has a small minority of woman members, and no top leadership posts are held by women legislators-- and none ever have been.

"In Albany, I am working to protect the hard-won gains for women’s rights."  Assemblywoman Lifton said "I am co-sponsor of the Reproductive Health Act that would put clearly in our law the protections of Roe v. Wade and subsequent court rulings that confirmed the right of individuals to make their own reproductive decisions."  Lifton has been endorsed by Planned Parenthood of the Southern Finger Lakes.

"But, amid the on-going struggles, we have an occasional strong victory that gives us hope that women’s voices can be heard loud and strong. A crisis was developing in New York whereby licensed midwives would not be able to continue to assist women in homebirth, an option chosen by thousands of women and their families every year. I helped lead the fight, with the support of those women, their families and supporters to change our law to allow those licensed, highly-trained midwives to continue those critical services to women. Some thought it would be a long protracted battle, but with everyone working together, we claimed an early victory. Women can do amazing things when they are fully engaged."  The Governor has signed the bill Lifton fought for, the Midwifery Modernization Act, into law this summer.

Lifton also stressed that women can't take the gains we have made for granted, but must remain politically active.  "Young women are not voting in the numbers they should –and we don’t have enough women in office. We need to bring women back into politics, especially young women, and have them fully-re-engage, because they are needed in the important struggles for women, for our children and for our communities"

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