Where is the Equal Rights Amendment?
Equality of rights under the law shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex. ERA, 1943
Women shall have equal rights in the United States and every place subject to its jurisdiction. Equality of rights under the law shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex.
ERA, 2014
On April 29, 1978, I joined 4000 other activists in Chicago, Ill. to march for the passage of the Equal Rights Amendment. The amendment had passed Congress on March 22, 1972, and was proposed for ratification by the states. There was a seven-year deadline, and by 1978 Illinois was the only northern state that had not yet ratified. Our efforts were unsuccessful, and Illinois did not approve the ERA, even by the extended deadline of 1982. It still has not passed.
What Would the ERA Accomplish?
Simply put, the ERA would ban discrimination based on sex and guarantee equality for women under the Constitution.
A Bit of History
The ERA was designed to guarantee equal legal rights for all citizens regardless of sex. The first version of the ERA was written by Alice Paul and Crystal Eastman and introduced in Congress in 1923. There it sat, supported by some challenged by others who feared that working women would lose their special protections regarding working conditions if it passed. However, attitudes changed, and by 1972 it was approved by Congress and sent to the state legislatures for ratification.
Through 1977, the amendment received 35 of the needed 38 state ratifications. Again, conservative women, led by Phyllis Schlafly, argued that the ERA would work to the disadvantage of women. They feared women could be drafted into the military, that we would have shared bathrooms, that they could lose custody of their children in divorce cases, and eliminate the protections found in the labor laws.
Five state legislatures (Idaho, Kentucky, Nebraska, Tennessee, and South Dakota) voted to rescind their ratifications. The unresolved legal question remains, "Can a state revoke its ratification of a federal constitutional amendment?"
Even with the deadline extended, no additional state legislatures ratified the amendment. However, with the rise of the Me Too movement, interest in getting the ERA adopted revived. In 2017, Nevada ratified the amendment, and Illinois followed in 2018. On January 15, 2020, Virginia voted for the amendment, claiming to bring ratifications to 38. There is still some legal uncertainty about the consequences of those votes due to the expired deadline and the five states that revoked.
Where are we now?
As is customary for all things legal, where we stand depends on who you ask.
Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg thinks we need to begin anew. She has suggested that the deadline has expired, and "I'd like it to start over." Speaking at an event to honor the centennial of the 19th amendment giving women the right to vote, she reiterated that she believes the ERA should be part of our Constitution.
"I would like to show my granddaughters that the equal citizenship stature of men and women is a fundamental human right," she said.
The Virginia vote sets the stage for a new fight over the fate of the amendment. Supporters argue that the ERA has met its burden of 38 states and should now be certified as part of the Constitution.
In February of this year, the House of Representatives voted to approve a resolution to eliminate a deadline for states to ratify the amendment. While the Senate has shown no interest, the House vote still serves to revive the debate over the ERA and its decade's long fight to be added to the Constitution.
Why write about the ERA so many years after I walked on the cold, windy streets of Chicago in its support?
Because I suspect that when the vaccine for the pandemic is created, thereby sending that little bug packing, and the election is over, there will be changes and a new normal. And part of that new normal will be women seeking a stronger position in society. Passage of the Equal Rights Amendment can help them achieve that goal.
Where to find more information:
CNN article: https://www.cnn.com/2020/02/10/politics/ruth-bader-ginsburg-equal-rights-amendment/index.html
FAQ's re ERA: https://www.equalrightsamendment.org/faqs
Mrs. America is an American drama television miniseries created by Dahvi Waller about the political movement to pass the Equal Rights Amendment. Starring Cate Blanchett, Rose Byrne, Uzo Aduba, Elizabeth Banks, Margo Martindale, John Slattery, Tracey Ullman, and Sarah Paulson, the series premiered to critical acclaim on April 15, 2020, on FX on Hulu.
What Can You Do to Support the ERA?
The ERA Coalition (http://www.eracoalition.org/about) is an organization working with other organizations to provide a forum for all voices.
Find out if your representative supports era bills. Contact them here to either thank them for supporting the ERA, or encourage them to sign on.
Join organizations such as NOW (National Organization for Women) that support the ERA.