1. CONSTITUTIONAL EQUALITY:
STATE & FEDERAL INITIATIVES
M. Kathleen Murphy,
Founder of MN C.A.F.E. Coalition
now ERA Minnesota

2. CONSTITUTIONAL
EQUALITY:
I. History
II. Why?
III. ERA Strategies

3. “EQUALITY OF RIGHTS UNDER
THE LAW SHALL NOT BE
ABRIDGED OR DENIED
ON ACCOUNT OF GENDER.”

4. I. HISTORY
1800’s: Constitutional Amendments
1920: Suffrage
1923: Introduction of ERA
1970’s: Trying to Ratify the 27th
Amendment
1982: Defeated

5. 1868: 14th Amendment
• Created broad definition of citizenship
• Adopted after the Civil War (July 9, 1868) as
one of the reconstruction Amendments
• The word “male” was introduced for the first
time

6. 1870: 15th Amendment
“The right… to vote shall
not be denied or
abridged…
on account of race, color,
or previous condition of
servitude.”
Women are not included.

7. 1920: 19th Amendment
A 50 year fight finally won
women their only
Constitutionally guaranteed
right —
the right to vote.

8. 1923: Alice Paul Proposes the
Equal Rights Amendment
Section 1. Equality of rights under the
law shall not be denied or abridged
by the United States or by any state
on account of sex.
Section 2. The Congress shall have
the power to enforce, by appropriate
legislation, the provisions of this
article.
Section 3. This amendment shall take
effect two years after the date of
ratification.

9. 1960’s: ERA Movement begins
again
The late 1960’s and early 1970’s brought a
resurgence of the fight for an Equal Rights
Amendment - led by many great women, including
activists & authors Betty Friedan, Pauli Murray,
Gloria Steinem and bell hooks.

10. Supreme Court rulings
1961: In Hoyt v. Florida SCOTUS upheld sex
discrimination.
Caused President Kennedy to create the President’s
Commission on the Status of Women.
1971: In Reed v. Reed “In the absence of a firm
constitutional foundation for equal treatment of men &
women under the law, women seeking to be judged on their
individual merits will continue to encounter law-sanctioned
obstacles.”
- Pauli Murray, Ruth Bader Ginsburg & Dorothy Kenyon, legal
counsel to Sally Reed in Reed v. Reed, 404 U.S. 71, 1971.

11. Supreme Court rulings
“The ACLU and NOW maintained that sex was a suspect
classification for the same reason race was: Both were
natural traits that the dominant culture has treated as a
badge of inferiority and stigmatized legally, based upon
inaccurate stereotypes about the group defined by that trait.”
In Reed, SCOTUS was unanimous that
arbitrary discrimination existed, but left these
other arguments unaddressed.
1973: Four justices argued for strict
scrutiny under the Equal Protection
Clause in Frontiero v. Richardson, 411
U.S. 677, 1973.

12. ’71 & ’72: Overwhelming Support
In June of 1971 the Amendment easily passed the
House of Representatives, and through the Senate in
March of 1972.
0
100
200
300
400
Vote in US House: 354
to 24
Yes
No
0
23
45
68
90
Vote in the US
Senate: 84 to 8
Yes
No

13. Minnesota was the 26th state to ratify in
1973.
By 1977: 35 states, out of the 38 necessary, had ratified
the ERA
Ratified
Passed in 1 body
Not ratified
Ratified
in May!

14. • ERA original 7 year deadline: June 1979
• Congress extended deadline:
June 30, 1982
• Arbitrary timeline, only 2
amendments have had a time
constraint
• 27th Amendment ratified in 1992
took 203 years for 38th state to pass
DEADLINE for RATIFICATION

15. 1979: UN adopts CEDAW Treaty
• The United Nations General Assembly adopts CEDAW: the
Convention on the Elimination of all forms of Discrimination
Against Women.
• Described as an international bill of rights for women, it was
instituted on 3 September 1981 and has been ratified by 189
states.
• U.S. signed on, but has refused to ratify.
• Only 7 countries not signed on: USA, Iran, Sudan, Somalia,
(“Survivor” islands) Nauru, Pelau, and Tonga.

16. WHAT HAPPENED?

17. (I. History continued) What happened?
• Why didn’t enough states ratify the ERA?
• Why wasn’t CEDAW ratified?
• What were the opponents’ arguments?
- Scare tactics
- Insurance lobby
- Feminist backlash
- Change in politics
- Connection to abortion politics

18. Scare Tactic #1
• Equal rights would force
women to work outside the
home.
• (It was actually WWII that
forced more women into the
work force. Many liked being
valued & getting their own
paycheck.)

19. Scare Tactic #2
• Men would not be required to provide for
their families.
Scare Tactic #3
Fraternities & Sororities
Boy Scouts & Girl Scouts
Same-Sex Public Bathrooms
• The government would require forced gender
integration into things such as:

20. Scare Tactic #4
Women soldiers are now in nearly all
areas of our military, including
combat. They fight and die for our
country. What they don’t get is medals of honor
when
they die –side by side– with the men.
• Women would be forced into
military combat.

21. Scare Tactic #5
So called “protective” labor laws
actually prohibit opportunity.
Women have been led to
believe that current law held us
up on a pedestal to ‘protect’ us
from hard work or conditions.
Reality: we are still being kept
from high wage jobs for this
reason.
• Women would lose
“protected” status in the
workforce.

22. Why was ERA defeated?
Insurance Lobby
Insurance companies spent millions of dollars on
lobbying in Illinois, Florida and Missouri.
Lobbying Expenditures by Insurance Companies
$160 M
$128 M
$96 M
$64 M
$32 M
$0 M

23. Why was ERA defeated?
Feminist Backlash
Claims made:
• ERA is anti-family & anti-American
• Alimony & child support laws would be
ignored
• Women are not REALLY being
discriminated against

24. Why was ERA defeated?
Change in political atmosphere
1980: the election of Ronald Reagan
meant change.
• 1st U.S. President to ever openly
oppose equal rights
• Equal rights were removed from the
Republican party platform
Constitutional equal rights had been supported by every
U.S. President since Teddy Roosevelt first supported
them in 1914.

25. Why was ERA defeated?
Connection to abortion
A state ruling in 1981 suggested that the
state’s ERA was partially responsible for
eliminating a ban on public funding of abortion.
Anti-abortion groups insist on an “abortion-neutralization amendment”
to any federal ERA. The amendment would add to the ERA the
sentence, “Nothing in this article [the ERA] shall be construed to
grant, secure, or deny any right relating to abortion or the funding
thereof.”

26. 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.

27. Most recent polling…
June 2016 - Americans
— by 94% —
overwhelmingly support
the Equal Rights
Amendment

28. II. WHY IS
CONSTITUTIONAL EQUALITY
STILL NECESSARY?

29. 1. Equal rights are not fully guaranteed by the
Equal Protection Clause.
2. Judicial standards need to be stricter and
clearer.
3. Protection from rolling back significant
advances over the last 50 years.
4. Prevalence of gender violence is endemic.
5. United States needs to prove its commitment
and be an international leader.
WHY?

30. Why necessary?
1) Equal Rights are not fully guaranteed.
• 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.

31. Case #1: Equal Pay for Equal Work.
Lilly Ledbetter began her career at
Goodyear Tire with the same starting
salary as her co-workers. 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.
Why necessary?
1) Equal Rights are not fully guaranteed.

32. 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 doesn’t
include the loss in
pension, retirement
accounts and
bonuses.
Why necessary?
1) Equal Rights are not fully guaranteed.

33. Case #2: Women’s Healthcare Under Attack
• Family planning funding to be eliminated
• Emergency reproductive care could be entirely
eliminated
• Men’s healthcare needs are covered by
insurance, including Viagra & Cialis
• Women pay more
in premiums
Why necessary?
1) Equal Rights are not fully guaranteed.

34. • 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 and our country has zero
tolerance for all forms of sex discrimination.
Why necessary?
2) Need for a clearer & stricter judicial standard
for deciding cases of sex discrimination.

35. • 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.
Why necessary?
3) Protection from rolling back significant
advances over the last 50 years.

36. 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
Why necessary?
3) Protection from rolling back significant
advances over the last 50 years.

37. According to the 2013 “Benchmarking Women’s
Leadership” report, women’s advancement
across 10
working sectors
has stalled at
18% across
the board.
Why necessary?
3) Protection from rolling back significant
advances over the last 50 years.

38. Endemic = the norm, to be expected
Femicide reports (21 in 2016, 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)
Why necessary?
4) Gender Violence

39. Gender Violence.
“Sexual violence is a clear indicator of gender inequality.
The single greatest risk factor for becoming a victim of
sexual assault is being a woman.* Violence against
women is a systemic, and literally deadly, expression of
a fundamental gender inequity. Sexual violence, and all
violence against women, not only reflects this
fundamental inequality but moreover perpetuates it.”
- Kate Ravenscroft, 10 Reasons We All Need to Care About Sexual
Violence
Why necessary?
4) Gender Violence

40. What any form of sexual violence against women shows is an essential
lack of respect for women. It fails to see that women have full and
equal rights and that any sexual activity needs to take those rights into
account. To put it bluntly, it refuses women the right to not only
choose, accept and initiate sexual activity as they see fit, but equally to
refuse any sexual activity at any time, under any conditions, according
to their own desires. A culture that doesn’t value a woman’s voice, that
does not listen to women, will have trouble respecting a woman’s right
to choose when, where, how and with whom she engages in sexual
activity. Such a culture, as we know only too well, perpetrates violence
against women at alarming levels.
- Kate Ravenscroft, 10 Reasons We All Need to Care About Sexual Violence
Why necessary?
4) Gender Violence

41. • Many other countries - including Iraq, Japan, and
emerging nations since the 1970‘s - 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?
Why necessary?
5) The United States needs to prove our
international commitment to equality.

42. But is a State ERA necessary?
• 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?

43. 22 states have added Equal Rights
Amendments to their own Constitutions
ERA adopted in the 1800’s
ERA adopted from 1972-1982
ERA adopted in 1998
Sex discrimination protection

44. Benefits for men…
• Acceptance of men in non traditional work
• Acceptance of pay equality
• Cultural shift
• Paternity leaves for men
• Parental custody issues

45. Benefits for LGBT…
• States with ERAs adopted were 4 times more
likely to have accepted marriage equality
before it was decided at the Supreme Court
• Acceptance of gender identity and gender
expression
• Cultural shift
• Affirming that discrimination of any kind is not
acceptable under the law

46. III. STRATEGY

47. Minnesota Strategy:
Legislation & Ballot Initiative
• Grassroots:
community by community
education, awareness & citizen
lobbying
• TWO bills:
1) Memorialize Congress to act on
the Federal ERA
2) Pass an ERA for the Minnesota
Constitution

48. National Strategies:
• Three-State Strategy:
- Now only 2 more states need to ratify
- Congress needs to pass a bill to reinstate the
timeline
• Start Over:
- Rewritten, reintroduced, passed with 2/3
majority & sent back to the states for ratification
- New amendment that is explicit and makes clear
that race is included
- Similar to other constitutions around the world

49. Join Us!
Spread the word, Volunteer, or
Donate

50. Thank You!
For more information:
www.ERAmn.org
or
www.ERAcoalition.org