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1868: 14th Amendment

(broad definition of citizenship)

Adopted after the Civil

War (July 9, 1868) as one
of the reconstruction
Amendments.

The word male was inserted into

the Constitution for the first time.

1870: 15th Amendment

(voting rights)

The right to vote shall

not be denied or abridged
on account of race, color,
or previous condition of
servitude.
Note that women are excluded.

1920: 19th Amendment

(womens right to vote)

A 50 year fight
finally won women
their only
Constitutionally
guaranteed right
the right to vote.

1923: Alice Paul Proposes the

Equal Rights Amendment

1970s:
Active ERA Movement
The late 1960s and early
1970s brought back a
resurgence of the fight for an
Equal Rights Amendment led by many great women,
including Gloria Steinem,
Betty Friedan and bell
hooks.

71 & 72: Overwhelming Support

In June of 1971 the Amendment easily passed the House of

Representatives 354 to 24, and through the Senate in March
of 1972 with a vote of 84 to 8.

MN was 26th state to ratify in 1973

Ratified
Passed in 1 body
Not ratified

(I. History continued)

What happened?
Why didnt enough states ratify the ERA?
Why wasnt CEDAW ratified?
What were the opponents arguments?
- Scare Tactics
- Insurance lobby
- Feminist Backlash
- Change in Politics

Scare Tactic #1
Would force women out of the home.

Scare Tactic #2

Men would NOT be required to

provide for their families.

Scare Tactic #3
forced sex integration
Fraternities &
Sororities
Boy Scouts & Girl
Scouts
Same-Sex Public
Bathrooms

Scare Tactic #4
Women in Combat

Women soldiers are now in almost

all areas of our military. They fight
and die for our country.
What they dont get is
medals of honor when
they die--side by side
with the men.

Scare Tactic #5

false notion of protected class

So called protective labor laws
actually prohibit opportunity
Women were led to believe that
current law held us up on a pedestal
to protect us from hard work.
Reality: we are still being kept from
high wage jobs for this reason.

Why defeated?

Insurance Lobby

Insurance Companies have millions of dollars to

spend on lobbying--and they didnt hesitate to spend
it in Illinois, Florida and Missouri.

Why defeated?

Feminist Backlash
Claims made:
Anti-family & anti-American
Alimony & child support
laws would be ignored
Women were not REALLY
being discriminated against

Why defeated?

Change in political atmosphere

The 1980 election of Ronald
Reagan meant change:
1st U.S. President to ever openly
oppose equal rights
Equal rights was removed from
the Republican party platform

Constitutional rights had been supported by every

US President since Teddy Roosevelt first supported
them in 1914.

Now jump ahead 20 years

2001 Public awareness poll
shows 72% of Americans
believe the Constitution
makes it clear that male and
female citizens are supposed
to have equal rights.
88% replied the Constitution
SHOULD make it clear that
all citizens have equal rights.

1) Equal Rights are not fully guaranteed.

2) No guarantee womens rights wont be rolled back.
3) Judicial standards need to be stricter and clearer.
4) United States needs to prove international commitment.

 Neither the U.S. Constitution nor the Minnesota

Constitution explicitly guarantees that all of the rights it
protects are held equally by all citizens without regard
to sex.
The only right that either Constitution
specifically affirms as equal for women
and men is the right to vote.

Case #1: Equal Pay for Equal Work.

Lilly Ledbetter began her career at Goodyear
Tire with the same starting salary as her coworkers. Over 19 years in a supervisory role,
she helped to train a number of new hires (all
men) and in 1996 she received a Top
Performer award for her contribution to the
company.
But over time she was paid much less than all
her male counterparts.

Compared to the lowest paid male for a

random month she made $3,727 to his $4,286
- that is $.87 to his $1.00 (or 13% less)
- in a year that added up to $6,708 less --

- over 15 years $100,620 less

(assuming no increases for her or him)

Compared to the highest paid male she

made $3,727 to his $5,236
- that is $.71 to his $1.00 (or 29% less)
- in a year that added up to $18,108 less --

in 15 years $271,620 less

(assuming no increases for him or her)

This was actual salary; it

doesnt include the loss in
pension, retirement accounts
and bonuses.

Case #2: Womens Healthcare Under Attack

Family planning funding to be eliminated
Emergency reproductive care could be entirely
eliminated
All mens healthcare needs are covered by
insurance (including Viagra)
Women pay more
in premiums

 The Courts hold sex discrimination to a lower standard than

discrimination based on race, religion, or national origin.
Court decisions are inconsistent in
applying current law - adding to
confusion about how to review sex
discrimination claims.
A Constitutional amendment would send
the message that our state has zero
tolerance for all forms of sex discrimination.

 The courts & the legislature have

the power to replace existing laws
by a mere majority vote.
Judicial precedents can be eroded
or ignored.
With an ERA in place, progress already made in

eliminating sex discrimination would be much harder to

reverse.

 Lilly Ledbetter v. Goodyear Tire reversed 40 years of Equal

Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) laws
Citizens United v. FEC reversed 63+ years of campaign laws
Corporate personhood

According to the Benchmarking Womens

Leadership report, womens advancement
across 10
working sectors
has stalled at
18% across
the board.

Gender Violence.
Endemic = the norm, to be expected
Femicide reports (28 people in 2010 in MN)
Reported rapes (average 6 per day reported in MN, but only
16% are assumed to be reported = 38 per day or 13,687 per year,
84% know the attacker)

We still have a long way to go for women

everywhere to be safe.

- Kate

Ravenscroft, 10 Reasons We All Need to Care About Sexual Violence

 Many other countries - including Iraq, Japan, and emerging

nations since the 1970s - specifically affirm legal equality of
the sexes in their governing documents.
CEDAW has been ratified by all but 7 countries in the world:

Iran, Sudan, Somalia, Nauru, Palau, Tonga and the USA. If

the US is a leader--what are we saying?

GLOBAL CHANGE STARTS AT HOME!

 Minnesota Laws: 116 statutes with gender

classifications have been overturned in MN since 1972
(current laws not protected)
A Constitution is the foundation on which all laws are
based. It states the fundamental beliefs and principles
of our state.
The MN Constitution protects hunting, fishing and
a state lottery...

WHY NOT WOMEN?

ERA adopted in the 1800s

ERA adopted from 1972-1982
ERA adopted in 1998
Sex discrimination protection

Benefits for men

Acceptance of men in
non traditional work
Acceptance of pay
equality
Cultural shift
Maternity leaves for
men
Parental rights

Minnesota Strategy
Build Statewide Coalition
Legislative Strategy
Placed on the Ballot

Minnesota Strategy:

Build Statewide Coalition

Public awareness
campaign.
Go from city to city and
build a grassroots
community by educating
people and letting them
know about and
encouraging them to join
the CAFE Coalition

Minnesota Strategy:

Legislative Strategy
Grassroots:
community by community education, awareness & citizen
lobbying
Make into an election year issue in 2016:
in ALL legislative races
If enough support:
passage by both House
& Senate
(does NOT require
Governors signature)

Minnesota Strategy:

Placed on the Ballot

Once on the ballot,
people must know if
they DONT mark their
ballot, they are voting
NO

A Major advocacy campaign

will require resources:
money and volunteers!

What can you do?

Join Us! Spread the word
Find us on the web
www.ERAmn.org
Follow us on facebook

Check out our blog

Display our button
Tell your friends!

Join Us!
Volunteer or Donate to the Coalition

For more information:

www.ERAmn.org
or
eracampaign.net
equalrightsamendment.org

Thank You!