by Freeda Cathcart
Contact: Freeda@gmail.com
I was disappointed with Rep. Bob Goodlatte’s response after the NAACP Jubilee service when I asked if he was supporting the Equal Rights Amendment. He told me the ERA isn’t necessary. People who believe the ERA isn’t necessary need to understand the reasons why there is a growing movement to finish the work to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment.
John Payton, president and director-counsel of the NAACP Legal Defense Fund explained why it’s important to support Equal Rights for all in a 2009 interview. Some people try to claim that the 14th amendment provides women equal rights, but if the 14th amendment applied to women then why did we need the 19th amendment to give women the right to vote?
During an interview in California Lawyer, Supreme Court Justice Scalia said, “Certainly the Constitution does not require discrimination on the basis of sex. The only issue is whether it prohibits it. It doesn’t.”
In a follow up article in the Huffington Post Marcia Greenberger, founder and co-president of the National Women’s Law Center, was “shocked” by Justice Scalia’s comments. Greenberger said, “In these comments, Justice Scalia says if Congress wants to protect laws that prohibit sex discrimination, that’s up to them, but what if they want to pass laws that discriminate? Then he says that there’s nothing the court will do to protect women from government-sanctioned discrimination against them.”
A recent study by the American Association of University Women found: “African American women are paid 89 percent of what African American men are paid, and that number drops to 64 percent in comparison with white men.” When women aren’t paid what they are worth it hurts their families and our community. There is less money to pay for college, retirement and everyday expenses.
There has only been one amendment congress passed with a deadline for ratification and that is the Equal Rights Amendment. The ERA was only given 10 years to be ratified. There is pending legislation in Congress to remove the deadline and so far 146 Representatives (HJR 113) and 36 Senators (SJR 15) have signed up to be co-sponsors. There is also legislation that has been introduced into this upcoming Virginia General Assembly Senate (SJ 216) and House (HJ495) to pass the ERA. Virginia has been identified as one of the most likely to pass the ERA. Only a total of three more states are required to ratify the ERA.
I am working with the General Federation of Women’s Clubs in Virginia to contact our representatives in Congress and the General Assembly to urge them to support the ERA. I hope the Roanoke NAACP will work with branches across Virginia to help ratify the ERA. The more civic groups that join us like the SCLC, Deltas, Alphas, Kiwanis, Ruritans and other groups then Representatives like Bob Goodlatte might decide it’s important to support the ERA. Individuals are also encouraged to directly contact their representatives to ask them to support the ERA.
Please let me know how we can work together to make sure future generations have equality guaranteed to them in our nation’s constitution.
