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A Poem to Break the Silence

"Silence afflicts too many women's lives-the silence that keeps women from expressing themselves freely, from being full participants even in the lives of their own families."
-Hillary Rodham Clinton
To illustrate her point about breaking the silence, Mrs. Clinton, during a speech at last year's Beijing U.N. forum on women, read a poem written by a young woman she met in New Delhi:

Too many women in too many countries speak the same language of silence. My grandmother was always silent, always agreed. Only her husband had the positive right, or so it was said, to speak and to be heard. They say it is different now. After all, I am always vocal, and my grandmother thinks I talk too much. But sometimes I wonder. When a woman gives her love, as most do, generously, it is accepted. When a woman shares her thoughts, as some women do, graciously, it is allowed. When a woman fights for power as all women would like to, quietly or loudly, it is questioned. And yet, there must be freedom if we are to speak. And yes, there must be power if we are to be heard. And when we have both freedom and power, let us not be misunderstood. We seek only to give words to those who cannot speak-too many women in too many countries. I seek only to forget my grandmother's silence.

"That is the kind of feeling that literally millions and millions of women feel every day," Mrs. Clinton said.


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