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First woman AFL-CIO president hopes her historic election inspires other women

Peter Szekely
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The first woman to lead the biggest U.S. labor federation wants even more women as decision-makers in a labor movement that is becoming less male and less white.

"When you see women in key positions of leadership, it emboldens women to continue to aspire to more,” Liz Shuler said in an interview hours after the AFL-CIO's governing Executive Council elected her as president on Friday.

Shuler, 51, had been the federation's No. 2 officer since 2009 and became interim president following the sudden death earlier this month of Richard Trumka, who had been president of the AFL-CIO since 2009.

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