Your Vote, Your Voice, Our Democracy is the theme for this year’s Law Day through the American Bar Association.  The theme celebrates the 100th anniversary of the 19th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution that granted American women the right to vote. The right, known as women’s suffrage, was ratified on August 18, 1920.

Information from the American Bar Association states: “The women’s suffrage movement forever changed America, expanding representative democracy and inspiring other popular movements for constitutional change and reform. Yet, honest reflection on the suffrage movement reveals complexity and tensions over race and class that remain part of the ongoing story of the Nineteenth Amendment and its legacies.”

In recognition of the 19th Amendment, Chief Justice Heavican submitted the following to the Omaha Daily Record for their specialized Law Day edition:

As the 19th Amendment celebrates its 100th birthday and we celebrate the contributions women have made to society, we take stock of the contributions females have made to the administration of justice in Nebraska. In 1991, the Nebraska Supreme Court created the Task Force on Gender Fairness in the Court. At that time, there were just nine female judges on the bench in Nebraska courts. Today, almost 30 years later, about 2,400 women are licensed to practice law in Nebraska, 58 women have been appointed to various courts in Nebraska, and there are currently 39 female judges, including two women on our Supreme Court and three on our Court of Appeals. Women have contributed much to the bench in Nebraska and to the legal profession. We have made much progress; now is not the time to let up.