The Case for the Equal Rights Amendment: Understanding Ratification

A compelling case can be made that the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) has actually been ratified. The only remaining step in its adoption is publication in the Federal Register. There is a move afoot to pressure President Biden to do that before the end of his term as President.

Heidi Li Feldman is an activist, legal scholar, philosopher, and progressive. She writes on her blog that the Equal Rights Amendment is already part of the U.S. Constitution. She makes a strong case for her position.

As stated above, by Article V of the U.S. Constitution, Congress has the authority to propose amendments to the U.S. Constitution, and an amendment proposed by Congress becomes part of the Constitution upon ratification by three-quarters of the states (today, thirty-eight states). The Constitution imposes no other requirements.

Opponents to the ERA point to the Congressional resolution proposing the ERA that included a seven year time limit for its ratification. They claim that “it was not properly ratified because it took forty-eight years for two-thirds of the states to ratify it.” However, the language of the Amendment itself included no such time limit. Thus the controversy over whether the ERA was legally ratified.

I am not a legal scholar, and therefore cannot state emphatically that Ms. Feldman’s reasoning is without error. I do see her point, and I also do believe that President Biden should take that final step, and publish the ERA. At that point, if the opponents wish to do so, they can certainly go to court and challenge his actions.

If, like me, you would like him to take this action, then you can communicate that directly to him by following this link, and sending him a text message. You can also sign a petition, send a letter, call him, and reach out other ways.

Besides the obvious benefit to the women of this country that the ERA provides, it is a strong sign that LGBT people should be treated equally as well. The Supreme Court has already held, in Bostock v. Clayton County, that sex discrimination includes sexual orientation and gender identity.

In that decision, they held that “an employer who fires an individual merely for being gay or transgender violates Title VII” of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Title VII prohibits sex discrimination. By extending the phrase sex discrimination to include the LGBT community in employment, they have made it clear that the ERA would extend that protection to the LGBT community in all matters.

A clear opportunity exists to make this country more fair for all of its citizens. I encourage you, my dear readers, to take action and tell President Biden to publish the ERA. In any case, the journey continues.

Tags: activism, BidenPublishTheERA, Equal Rights Amendment, ERA, ERANow, politics, USPol