WCI is saddened to hear of the passing of Senator Edward Kennedy, who died early Tuesday morning after a drawn-out battle with brain cancer. The brother of John and Robert Kennedy, Ted Kennedy’s career in the senate was long and influential, serving 46 years as a liberal Democrat. Well-known for working across the aisle and championing civil rights, Kennedy will be remembered for the legislative legacies he left behind. [1]

In particular, Ted Kennedy established himself as a supporter of the rights of women, minorities and the gay community. In 1972, early in his career, Kennedy helps pass the Meals on Wheels Act as well as WIC (Women, Infants and Children Nutrition Program) which provides services to low-income women and children. Additionally he spent the majority of his life advocating for better health care, and sponsored legislation addressing the health care needs of pregnant women, children with disabilities and low-income families.[2]

He also supported the Ryan White Care Act, the Head Start Program for early childhood education, the Matthew Shephard Hate Crimes Prevention Act, and Title IX.

In 2007, Kennedy re-introduced the Equal Rights Amendment for ratification, saying, “From the beginning of our history as a Nation, women have had to wage a constant, long and difficult battle to win the same basic rights granted to men. That battle goes on today, since discrimination still continues in many ways…we know from the failed ratification experiences of the past that amending the Constitution to include the ERA will not be easy to achieve. But the women of America deserve no less.”[3]

Read the Newsweek article Ted Kennedy wrote on July 18 regarding his fight for universal health care: http://www.newsweek.com/id/207406