The Defeat of the Equal Rights Amendment
The failure to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment, after its passage through both Houses of Congress in 1972, lies within the belief and value systems of the non-supporters. The opposition to the Amendment by highly educated and intellectual women contributed to its failure to be ratified by the required number of states.
The Equal Rights Amendment was an attempt to prohibit discrimination based on sex. It was first proposed back in 1923 by a woman named Alice Paul. (Equal Rights Amendment, 2010). Paul was the founder of the National Woman’s Party. Although she found success with her work within the Suffrage movement, Paul saw that only as a stepping stone. Paul wanted equality among the sexes in more than just the voting realm. This innate desire of Alice Paul’s caused the drafting of the Equal Rights Amendment. The Amendment was continually introduced in each Congressional session from 1923 until 1972 to no avail. (The History of the Equal Rights Amendment, n.d.). It was in the late 1960s, that women, again attempted to enact the Equal Rights Amendment. Numerous marches and educational symposiums took place in order to educate American women on the benefits of this Amendment. In 1972, the Amendment was finally approved by the Senate and sent to the states. Unfortunately for some, the amendment did not attain a minimum of 38 states to approve its ratification.[unique_solution]
The Equal Rights Amendment is a simple document with limited wording. Although the content within the Amendment itself is brief, it holds such complexity. As with any literature, words can be interpreted differently by different people. Some feminists interpreted the Amendment to illustrate a new, complete status of equality. While others interpreted the Amendment to constitute a change that they saw to be detrimental to the benefits that women held.
Despite the uprising of the women’s movement in the late 1960s and early 1970s, many women took a stand to fight against the passage of the Equal Rights Amendment. Their opposition was loud, clear, and effective. One of the most prominent women involved in the fight against the Equal Rights Amendment was Phyllis Schlafly. Schlafly, like many others, believed that women already live with such privilege in the United States that ratifying the Amendment would threaten these privileges. A few of the privileges which Schalfly was referring to include alimony, child support, and the fact that women were not subject to the draft. Schlafly argues that if women were to be equal to men, it would actually be a step downward for them. (Schalfly, 1972).
The Equal Rights Amendment was just one of many political campaigns taken on by the feminist movement. In order to understand why the opposition to the Amendment occurred, we must first understand the oppositions view on feminism. These views were the ultimate cause of the Amendments failure.
Schlafly viewed the feminist movement as holding no social value. This is evident by statements made by Schlafly while being interviewed on the Phil Donahue Show on December 9, 1975. Schlafly declares that the women’s movement is purely anti-family and destructive toward the very concept that is considered society’s basic unit. Schlafly firmly believed that the most fulfillments a woman can receive are in the home. (Donahue, 1975). Her views were announced very strongly within many public forums. Schlafly had the intent of swaying women from the radical feminist movement in order that they view housekeeping and parenting as the most successful aspect of a woman’s life. Schlafly used her intellect and political ardor to spread her message throughout the media.
Schlafly viewed feminists as people who were promoting universal perversion. This is evidenced by Schlaflys statement that feminists were out to promote pro-lesbian legislation. This was considered to be a perverted, immoral lifestyle and one that feminists suggested should be equal to all others, an ideal that Schlafly was adamantly opposed to. (Donahue, 1975). Schlaflys view on lesbianism is yet another reason why she fought against the passage of the Equal Rights Amendment. At this time in history, homosexuality had not yet become an acceptable way of life. If a woman’s fulfillment was to happen by being married and having children, then lesbianism was an obvious deterrent.
Schalfly paraded around the country speaking to the public in order to influence the people’s minds and gear them to a more conservative way of life. Schlafly, sporting an oversized STOP ERA sign which she had pinned to her overcoat, made her argument not only heard, but seen. (Leffler, 1977). The publicity which she received enabled Schlafly to get her message out. Her message was clear, and her argument was substantial. The ultimate consequence of Schlafly’s public foray was the failure to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment.
One of the short term consequences to the failure of the Amendments passage was the surge of women in the workforce. The women stepped up to show their male counterparts that they were just as capable as the men. From 1923 to 1985, the number of working women ages twenty five to forty jumped from fifteen percent to seventy one percent. (Guilder, 1986).
A long term consequence of the failure to ratify the Amendment is the fact that it is still being considered. When the Amendment failed to be ratified back in 1972, a deadline was placed for the Amendments imposition. The deadline came and went, and in 1982 there were only thirty five states that agreed on its ratification. The requirement was thirty eights states, rendering the Amendment as a failure. But, on Thursday, February 13, 2020 the United States House of Representatives came up with a resolution. This resolution, called H.J. Resolution 79, will remove the set 1982 deadline of the Equal Rights Amendment. (Pereira, 2020).Although the Equal Rights Amendment failed to pass since its inception nearly one hundred years ago, it is still a topic that some believe is worth fighting for.