| Edith Green | |
|---|---|
| Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Oregon's 3rd district |
|
| In office 1955 - 1974 |
|
| Preceded by | Homer D. Angell |
| Succeeded by | Robert B. Duncan |
| Personal details | |
| Born | January 17, 1910 Trent, South Dakota |
| Died | April 21, 1987 (aged 77) Portland, Oregon |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse(s) | Arthur N. Green |
Edith Louise Starrett Green (January 17, 1910 – April 21, 1987) was an American politician and educator in the state of Oregon. A native of South Dakota, she was raised in Oregon and completed her education at the University of Oregon and Stanford University. She was a school teacher and an advocate of education before entering politics in 1952 when she lost a bid to become Oregon Secretary of State. A Democrat, she then ran for Congress in 1954 and became the second congresswoman from Oregon. Green served ten terms in the House, holding office from 1955 to 1974.
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She was born Edith Louise Starrett in Trent, South Dakota. Her family moved to Oregon in 1916, where she attended schools in Salem, attending Willamette University from 1927 to 1929. She became a schoolteacher in 1929, married Arthur N. Green in 1930, and left school to begin a family.[1]
In 1939, Green went back to school and earned a bachelor's degree from the University of Oregon and did graduate study at Stanford University. She became a radio commentator and writer in the 1940s, but her interest in educational issues led her to become a lobbyist for the Oregon Education Association.[2]
A Democrat, Green first ran for political office in 1952 as the Democratic candidate for Oregon Secretary of State. She was defeated in a close race by incumbent Earl T. Newbry.[3] In 1954, she was elected as the representative for Oregon's 3rd congressional district, defeating Republican nominee (and future Oregon governor) Tom McCall. Green was the second woman (after Nan Wood Honeyman) to be elected to the House from Oregon, and one of only 17 women in the House at the time of her election.[1]
In her ten terms in the House, Green focused on women's issues, education and social reforms. In 1955, Green proposed the Equal Pay Act, to ensure that men and women were paid equally for equal work. The bill was signed into law eight years later. Other significant legislation that she introduced included the Alaska Mental Health Enabling Act of 1956, which reformed the mental health care system of the then Alaska Territory; the Library Service Bill, which provided access to libraries for rural communities; the Higher Education Facilities Act of 1963, which Lyndon Johnson called "the greatest step forward in the field since the passage of the Land-Grant Act of 1862,"[1] and the Higher Education Act of 1965 and 1967. Green's commitment to education earned her the moniker "Mrs. Education."[4]
Green also provided significant input to the National Defense Education Act of 1958, intended to keep the United States ahead of the Soviet Union during the space race after the launch of Sputnik 1.
Green is probably most noted for her work helping to develop the legislation that was to become Title IX, now-called the Patsy T. Mink Equal Opportunity in Education Act. The law prohibited sex discrimination in federally funded educational institutions. In the late 1960s, after noting that while programs existed to keep boys in school but no similar programs existed for girls, Green sought to correct this inequity.[4] She helped to introduce a higher education bill that contained provisions regarding gender equity in education.[5] The hearings on this bill, working together with fellow Representative Patsy Mink and Senator Birch Bayh, eventually resulted in the passage of Title IX in 1972.[6]
Senator Mark Hatfield called Green "the most powerful woman ever to serve in the Congress."[7] Adlai Stevenson selected her to second his nomination at the 1956 Democratic National Convention, and she headed the state primary campaigns for John F. Kennedy, Robert F. Kennedy, and Henry M. "Scoop" Jackson.[1]
Green herself was considered a contender for U.S. Senate several times, most notably in 1966 against eventual winner Hatfield,[8] but she declined each time to turn her House seniority for junior status in the Senate.[1]
Green did not seek an eleventh term in 1974, and resigned on December 31, 1974, just before her final term expired; she was succeeded by Robert B. Duncan. She returned to Portland and became a professor of government at Warner Pacific College. She was appointed to the Oregon State Board of Higher Education in 1979. Later living in Wilsonville, she was appointed by President Ronald Reagan to the President's Commission on White House Fellowships in 1981.[9] Edith Green died on April 21, 1987 in Tualatin and was buried at Mountain View Cemetery in Ashland.[2] The Edith Green - Wendell Wyatt Federal Building in Downtown Portland is named in her honor along with fellow Congressperson Wendell Wyatt, whom she served alongside of during part of her tenure in Congress.[10]
| United States House of Representatives | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Homer D. Angell |
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Oregon's 3rd congressional district 1955–1974 |
Succeeded by Robert B. Duncan |
| 89th | Senate: W. Morse | M. Neuberger | House: E. Green | A. Ullman | R. Duncan | W. Wyatt |
| 90th | Senate: W. Morse | M. Hatfield | House: E. Green | A. Ullman | W. Wyatt | J. Dellenback |
| 91st | Senate: M. Hatfield | B. Packwood | House: E. Green | A. Ullman | W. Wyatt | J. Dellenback |
| 92nd | Senate: M. Hatfield | B. Packwood | House: E. Green | A. Ullman | W. Wyatt | J. Dellenback |
| 93rd | Senate: M. Hatfield | B. Packwood | House: E. Green | A. Ullman | W. Wyatt | J. Dellenback |