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Thelma
Stovalls working life began at the age of fifteen, when she took a
job sweeping tobacco at Brown and Williamson Tobacco Co.
By the end of her career she had served three terms as a state
representative, three terms as secretary of state, and served as
Kentuckys first woman Lt. Governor.
In
an article written in tribute to Thelma Stovall on February 12, 1994,
Judith Egerton wrote in the Courier Journal:
Many believe that Thelma Stovall represented politics at its
best. She was honest and
direct. Her constituents
werent folks who travel in limousines, head corporations and organize
tasteful fundraisers. They
were tobacco workers, machinists, clerks, and janitors.
She was the champion of labor unions and working people.
Thelma
Stovall was also a champion for the rights of women.
One action that highlights her passion for gender equity is her
veto of a resolution passed by the General Assembly which rescinded
Kentuckys 1972 ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA). Governor Carrolls absence from the state made her the
acting governor, thereby granting her the power to take this action.
However, the legislature overrode her veto.
(Read Lt. Governor Stovalls veto
text and her statements
about it.)
Thelma
Stovalls career as an elected official ended after an unsuccessful
bid for Governor. She lost
to Governor John Y. Brown in 1979, the only loss of her career.
She was appointed by Governor Brown as the Commissioner of Labor,
which proved to be the last public office she held.
The
state of Kentucky has recognized her achievements in several ways,
including a plaque commemorating her achievements placed in the Capitol
in 1982. After her death in
1994, she became one of the few to lie in state in the Capitol Rotunda.
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Listen to a clip
from an interview with Thelma Stovall. To view a
transcription of the clip while you listen, click on
"clip" and then on "transcription."
View a transcription
of this clip. |
Read
the remarks by Lt. Governor
Stovall to the Future Homemakers of America
--April 6, 1976.
Follow this link to learn
more about the ERA.
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