who said nevertheless she persisted

The phrase “Nevertheless, she persisted” was said by Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell in February 2017, referring to Senator Elizabeth Warren during Jeff Sessions’ confirmation hearing for U.S. Attorney General.

Who said it, exactly?

McConnell’s full comment about Warren was: she “was warned. She was given an explanation. Nevertheless, she persisted.”

He was explaining why Republicans had voted to silence Warren as she read a 1986 letter from Coretta Scott King criticizing Sessions’ civil rights record.

What was happening at the time?

• The setting was the U.S. Senate debate over Jeff Sessions’ nomination as Attorney General in February 2017.

• Warren was speaking against the nomination and reading King’s letter when the Senate invoked Rule XIX to stop her, after which McConnell made the remark.

Why did it become famous?

The phrase quickly turned into a feminist and political rallying cry, used to symbolize women continuing to speak up despite attempts to silence them.

It spread widely on social media, appeared on signs, shirts, and jewelry, and was later adopted as a Women’s History Month theme: “Nevertheless, She Persisted: Honoring Women Who Fight All Forms of Discrimination Against Women.”

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.