Victoria E. Rodríguez

Lyndon B. Johnson School of Public Affairs

University of Texas at Austin

I also wish to welcome all our distinguished guests to Austin, to the University of Texas, and to the LBJ School of Public Affairs. It is, indeed, a great pleasure for me to see this gathering take place, after many months of thought and planning. As you are all aware, this conference is a climatic point to a research project that I have been carrying out at the LBJ School during the past academic year, analyzing the role of women in contemporary Mexican politics. Although I will speak in more detail about the project during a later session today, I do wish to take this opportunity to speak briefly about it now and, more importantly, to thank some of the many people who have made it possible.

First and foremost, and before describing my project to you, I wish to acknowledge my Dean, Max Sherman, for generously supporting the entire project, and the Mexican Center of the Institute of Latin American Studies, for the organization of this event.

The principal purpose of the research project from which this meeting arises is to analyze the various ways in which women participate in politics in Mexico. Being a political scientist, as I am, I am interested in looking at women as political actors, and in analyzing how they get involved in different arenas and areas of activity. The breadth of this project truly is, perhaps, what makes it so unique. As you will see in our conference program, my project has sought to look at Mexico's women in government in elected and appointed office, women in NGOs, in labor unions, in feminist organizations, in the grassroots, and as wives of politicians. A special effort has also been made to include women from different political parties, from all levels of government (federal, state, and local), and also, from different regions of the country. As I will describe later on, we are now beginning to put together all the information collected during the course of the project and uncovering some truly fascinating findings.

When I say "we" I am referring to my team of graduate students who have carried out the project with me, and whom I wish to acknowledge. In several occasions during the past few months they have travelled through Mexico, interviewing women from all walks of political life. Many of these women are here with us today, and to them, also, I wish to express my deepest gratitude, for being prepared to be a part of this project, and for being willing to share so candidly with us their experiences and insights about their own experiences in Mexico's political life. In welcoming you to Austin, I also wish to emphasize that one of the main purposes of this conference is that it serves as a neutral forum for all of you to exchange ideas, to discuss the future of Mexico and, especially, the place that women will occupy in this future.

But when planning this conference, many months ago, one of our main goals, as Dr. Ward mentioned in his opening comments, was to seek to involve Governor Richards and her women appointees in a dialogue with their Mexican counterparts. In fact, last September Dr. Ward and I were at a reception in the Governor's Mansion, and while talking to one of her senior staffers I told her about the project and about the conference; she immediately said "oh, we'll have a blast!" and then went on to say that we should hold a reception "here in the Mansion"; then she paused and said "If we're still here of course!" Sadly for us, and even more sadly for the state of Texas, that was not to be. As my esteemed colleague, Professor Barbara Jordan, put it, in her characteristic forcefulness, "the 1994 election was the revenge of the white male."

In any event, Governor Richards, today we are immensely honored by your presence. I do not think I will ever be able to express my gratitude to you for agreeing so graciously to be with us today. But more importantly, I do not think anyone will ever be able to thank you enough for what you did, singlehandedly, to give the government of Texas a new face and to change the role that women play in government everywhere.

Ladies and gentlemen, please join me in offering a warm welcome to the brigthest star of the Lone Star State, Governor Ann Richards.