by Pam Perraud (AAWE Paris, FAUSA), FAWCO’s Representative on the US Women’s Caucus at the UN
Currently, the ERA remains an unfulfilled and unresolved issue for every American woman. The League of Women Voters US along with the Center for Women in Politics of Rutgers University, both non-profit, non-partisan organizations, have compiled a list of where House and Senate candidates stand on the ERA.
Learn more about your state’s candidates here: https://www.eracoalition.org/electequality
Background on the ERA
The Equal Rights Amendment was originally introduced by Alice Paul in 1923. It was only finally approved by both US Congressional Houses in 1972. It was then sent to the state legislatures for approval. It requires approval by three-fourths of the states (38/50) to become part of the Constitution. By the deadline set in 1982, only 35 of the states had approved it. But in 2017, Nevada approved it, followed by Illinois in 2018, and on January 27, 2020, Virginia became the 38th state to finally approve it. On February 13, 2020 the US House of Representatives passed HJ Res. 79 to extend the time limit to allow the ERA to become law, but the Senate has not yet taken up the ERA deadline vote and several states have challenged the legality of the extension.
What does the Equal Rights Amendment say?
Equality of rights under the law shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex.
For more information about the ERA:
Frequently asked questions about the ERA: “Why is this amendment necessary?”, “What is the political history of the Amendment?”, as well as discussion about the legal challenges several states have brought to the Supreme Court: https://www.alicepaul.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/ERA-FAQs-updated-06-16-2020.pdf
What Happens Now?
The League of Women Voters US publishes a current update on what is happening with the ERA: https://www.lwv.org/blog/equal-rights-amendment-what-happens-now.
What is the history of the ERA?
https://www.equalrightsamendment.org/history
https://time.com/5657997/equal-rights-amendment-history/
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Note: FAWCO is non-partisan and does not endorse any candidates.