The St. Lawrence County Chapter of the American (AAUW) will celebrate the 95th anniversary of the passage of the 19th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution Wednesday, Aug. 26, when women received the right to vote.

Since 1971, America has observed this date as Women's Equality Day.

While many strong bills to improve the legal and economic situation of New York’s 10 million women were passed into law by the Assembly and the Senate this year, many are still waiting signature by the governor to become law.

One way to visibly mark Women's Equality Day is to fly your flag to honor the generations of Americans who worked for 72 years to win the right to vote for women. With little financial, legal or political power of their own, and working against a well financed and entrenched opposition, women fought for this basic right of citizenship.

In 2017, New York State will make the 100th anniversary of women’s suffrage; a full three years before the passage of the federal 19th amendment in 1920. Both the State Senate and the Assembly have approved legislation that would create a NYS Women’s Suffrage 100th Anniversary Commemoration Commission. North Country Senator Betty Little sponsored the Senate bill. The commission will help raise awareness of approval of a woman’s right to vote in New York in 1917.

Another good way to mark the day is to check your voter registration status and encourage family and friends to register to vote. The fourth annual National Voter Registration Day takes place on Tues., Sept. 22. According to the NVRD website, NationalVoterRegistrationDay.org, in 2008, "6 million Americans didn't vote because they missed a registration deadline or didn't know how to register.”

Membership in the St. Lawrence County Branch, founded in 1927, is open to anyone who supports the mission of AAUW: Advancing equity for women and girls through advocacy, education, philanthropy, and research.

AAUW, with its nationwide network of more than 150,000 members and supporters, more than 1,000 branches conducting programs in communities across the country, and 869 college and university partners (including all four local colleges), has been a leading advocate for equity and education for women and their families since 1881.