Test for FreeSign

From Continental Congress to Congress – What is at the heart of the DAR issue?

There are currently two separate bills proposed in Congress concerning the membership of the National Society Daughters of the American Revolution: H.R. 9701 in the House of Representatives and S. 5152 in the Senate. These bills seek to clarify that membership in the Daughters of the American Revolution is intended to be women-only. We are seeking your support for both of these bills.

Why does this matter to Congress? Because the Daughters of the American Revolution is not simply another private membership organization. It is a federally chartered organization whose corporate existence and governing charter were established by Congress. The question now before Congress concerns whether the membership principles embodied in that charter should be preserved and clarified in light of a fundamental change in how DAR's membership requirements are being interpreted and applied.

The congressional charter makes the issue particularly significant. Congress created a legal framework for the Society, and Congress now has before it legislation addressing the meaning and application of its membership provisions. The bills do not arise in a vacuum; they arise from a controversy that was first debated within the Society itself and ultimately brought to the floor of Continental Congress.

The floor statements reproduced in this document provide a firsthand record of the debate as it occurred at Continental Congress. They show what members and delegates were told, what arguments were made, what concerns were raised, what questions remained unanswered, and how the issue was ultimately presented to the membership. These statements are included so that members of Congress—and the public—can hear the debate in the words of those who participated in it.

The record that follows is intended to provide the context necessary to understand why these bills have been introduced, why clarification is being sought, and why we respectfully ask for your support.