Response to National Archives “Statement on the Equal Rights Amendment Ratification Process”
December 17, 2024
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
January 20, 2023
Contact: cwest@eracoalition.org
Washington, DC –– Ahead of the 50th anniversary of Roe v. Wade, the landmark Supreme Court ruling establishing a constitutional right to abortion that was overturned last summer, ERA Coalition and Fund for Women’s Equality President and CEO Zakiya Thomas released the following statement:
“Last year’s decision by the Supreme Court to upend established precedent and mount one of the most damaging assaults on our constitutional rights in the last 50 years was truly a turning point for the civil rights of everyone in this country. Today real people are suffering life-altering consequences resulting from the Court’s unjust decision, disproportionately hurting people who look like me, and LGBTQ+ people of color living in states that swiftly took action to severely restrict or completely eliminate abortion access.
“The Supreme Court’s disturbing decision reflected a stunningly limited view of the rights conferred by our Constitution, and only reaffirms why we need the Equal Rights Amendment. This year marks 100 years since the ERA was first introduced, and it’s clear that its opponents will continue to use the levers of government to perpetuate the second-class status of women and gender/sexual minorities in America unless we act.
“We’ve been fighting for sex equality for a century, and our mission is as fiercely urgent today as it was 100 years ago. It’s more important than ever that we enshrine the ERA in the Constitution, because our rights depend on it.”
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The ERA Coalition was founded in 2014 to bring concerted, organized action to the effort to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment. The ERA Coalition has a sister organization, the Fund for Women’s Equality, which promotes public education and outreach on the need for constitutional equality. Composed of more than 280 organizations across the country, the Coalition provides education and advocacy on Constitutional Equality.
While the effort to amend the constitution to include sex equality began nearly a century ago, our renewed efforts are centered on women of color (African American, Asian American/Pacific Islander, Latina, and Native American), gender-nonconforming and transgender women and girls, and nonbinary people – those who are most impacted by systemic inequities