Equality of rights under the law should not be denied by the United States or by any State on account of sex. Women have tried for equality in the Constitution for over a century through an Equal Rights Amendment. The Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) vows to rectify this problem by guaranteeing that rights cannot be denied on account of sex. This proposed amendment would make it illegal to discriminate based on sex and aims to ensure that all people, regardless of their gender, have the same legal rights and protections. The ERA has been ratified by 38 states, which is the number required for an amendment to be added to the Constitution. However, there are ongoing debates about whether the time limit set by Congress for ratification is still valid and whether the ratifications after this deadline are legitimate. While the ERA is a significant proposed amendment focused on gender equality, it has not officially become part of the Constitution.
One of the main complaints brought up by women is the unfair treatment in the workplace regarding promotions and raises. Nancy Stash, a teacher in the Central Bucks School District, a school that recently went through the court system where approximately 300 women were not given equal pay or moved up the salary scale because of their gender, stated, “For years, women have been considered the lesser gender.” On average, women who are working full-time, year-round, are paid 84% of what men are paid. With the implementation of ERA as an amendment, this number could equal out. “I think we will see the passage of new laws that will allow better treatment of women, more job openings, and they will be considered equal,” Stash reported regarding the ERA becoming an amendment.
The argument that the implementation of the ERA would ignore gender inequality is based on a misunderstanding of the Amendment’s purpose. The ERA explicitly states that “equality of rights under the law shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or any state on account of sex.” This text’s language clearly emphasizes the commitment to address sex-based discrimination and vows to rectify it rather than ignore it. The implementation of the ERA would provide a more robust legal framework for addressing sex inequality. When talking with a high school student, Riana Tortas expressed that she wasn’t acquainted with what the ERA would do. “It sounds great,” Tortas stated. “ I’m just not aware of the effects it would have.” The implementation of the ERA would be highly beneficial for providing a clear constitutional guarantee of gender equality, helping to eliminate ambiguity in the law regarding sex discrimination.
Discrimination based on race, religion, and national origin is granted the highest level of judicial review by the legal system, known as strict scrutiny. Gender equality should be given this same level of protection, but it is not. 85% of UN member states have a provision in their constitutions that addresses gender equality. The US is not one of them. The ERA would allow a bridge between federal and state legislation, making it more challenging for legislative bodies and courts to weaken or overturn established rights.
