The Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) is a proposed amendment to the United States Constitution designed to guarantee equal legal rights for all American citizens regardless of sex. Proponents assert it would end legal distinctions between men and women in matters of divorce, property, employment, and other matters. The first version of an ERA was written by Alice Paul and Crystal Eastman and introduced in Congress in December 1923.
Sonia Ann Johnson, is an American feminist activist and writer. She was an outspoken supporter of the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) and in the late 1970s was publicly critical of the position of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, of which she was a member, against the proposed amendment. She was eventually excommunicated from the church for her activities. She went on to publish several radical feminist books, ran for president in 1984, and become a popular feminist speaker.
The Joint Committee on Reconstruction, also known as the Joint Committee of Fifteen, was a joint committee of the 39th United States Congress that played a major role in Reconstruction in the wake of the American Civil War. It was created to "inquire into the condition of the States which formed the so-called Confederate States of America, and report whether they, or any of them, are entitled to be represented in either house of Congress.”
The Congressional Union for Woman Suffrage was an American organization formed in 1913 led by Alice Paul and Lucy Burns to campaign for a constitutional amendment guaranteeing women's suffrage. It was inspired by the United Kingdom's suffragette movement, which Paul and Burns had taken part in. Their continuous campaigning drew attention from congressmen, and in 1914 they were successful in forcing the amendment onto the floor for the first time in decades.
The Overman Committee was a special subcommittee of the United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary chaired by North Carolina Democrat Lee Slater Overman. Between September 1918 and June 1919, it investigated German and Bolshevik elements in the United States. It was an early forerunner of the better known House Un-American Activities Committee, and represented the first congressional committee investigation of communism.
The Parental Rights Amendment to the United States Constitution is a proposed change to the United States Constitution. The amendment's advocates say that it will allow parents' rights to direct the upbringing of their children, protected from federal interference, and the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. The Amendment was first proposed during the 110th Congress as House Joint Resolution 97 in July 2008, but no action was taken during that Congress. The Amendment has been described as a "wedge issue" and part of the culture wars.
Samuel James Ervin Jr. was an American politician. A Democrat, he served as a U.S. Senator from North Carolina from 1954 to 1974. A native of Morganton, he liked to call himself a "country lawyer", and often told humorous stories in his Southern drawl. During his Senate career, Ervin was a staunch defender of the Jim Crow laws and racial segregation, as the South's constitutional expert during the congressional debates on civil rights. Unexpectedly, he became a liberal hero for his support of civil liberties. He is remembered for his work in the investigation committees that brought down Senator Joseph McCarthy in 1954 and especially for his investigation of the Watergate scandal in 1972 that led to the resignation of Richard Nixon.
Mormon feminism is a feminist religious social movement concerned with the role of women within Mormonism. Mormon feminists commonly advocate for a more significant recognition of Heavenly Mother, the ordination of women, gender equality, and social justice grounded in Mormon theology and history. Mormon feminism advocates for more representation and presence of women as well as more leadership roles for women within the hierarchical structure of the church. It also promotes fostering healthy cultural attitudes concerning women and girls.
The Equality Act is a bill in the United States Congress, that, if passed, would amend the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to prohibit discrimination on the basis of sex, sexual orientation and gender identity in employment, housing, public accommodations, education, federally funded programs, credit, and jury service. The Supreme Court's June 2020 ruling in Bostock v. Clayton County protects gay and transgender people in matters of employment, but not in other respects. The Bostock ruling also covered the Altitude Express and Harris Funeral Homes cases.
Susan Catania is an American former politician who served as a Republican member of the Illinois House of Representatives from 1973 to 1983. She was involved in women's rights issues, and led the unsuccessful effort to get the federal Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) ratified by the Illinois General Assembly. Catania also served as chairperson of the Illinois Commission on the Status of Women. A representative from Chicago, she was described as a liberal, feminist, and maverick member of the Republican legislative caucus.
From the 1960s through the 1980s, proponents of the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) were seeking ratification in each state throughout the United States. Although the Senate approved an unamended version on March 22, 1972, attempts at ratification of the amendment in the state of Utah repeatedly failed. Organizations formed and took positions on both sides of the issue, including the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, which was one of the major opponents of the ERA. The Church organized women and other church members in opposition, while also networking with other anti-ERA organizations. The Utah Legislature officially voted down the amendment in 1975. However, Utah still houses a wide variety of organized groups and opinions for and against the Equal Rights Amendment, which remains unratified to the present.
The National Advisory Committee for Women (NACW) was a presidential commission established by President Jimmy Carter in 1978. It was renamed the President's Advisory Committee for Women (PACFW), with a reduced mandate, in 1979.
Emma Guffey Miller was an American feminist activist and long-time Democratic Party official. She was a major proponent of an Equal Rights Amendment for women.
Ruby Lee Grant Martin was an American lawyer and government official. She was director of the federal Office for Civil Rights, appointed by Lyndon B. Johnson. She won the Federal Woman's Award in 1968 for her work on school desegregation.
Georgia Fuller is a women's rights activist who was heavily involved in the political struggle for the Equal Rights Amendment in the 1980s. She was a member of the Congressional Union, a feminist group in the 1980s, and was co-founder of the Arlington, Virginia chapter of the National Organization for Women (NOW).
Elizabeth Farians, co-founded the National Organization of Women, was a religious studies scholar and a longtime activist for the Equal Rights Amendment. Farians is considered the first Catholic feminist to organize public protests and for over forty years she led a public fight against discrimination in religion.
A Group of Women was an American feminist organization in the 1980s who committed a series of actions in support of the ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment. Sonia Johnson was a notable member of this organization that advocated for the use of civil disobedience to raise awareness about the need for the ERA.
The National Organization for Women's Ecumenical Task Force on Women and Religion was created by feminist theologian Elizabeth Farians. The group played an important role in the creation of a Catholic feminist movement in the 1960s and early 1970s and worked for the ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment.
Religious Committee for the ERA was an American women's rights organization active in the late 1970s and early 1980s that advocated for the ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA).
Mormons for ERA was a feminist organization that lobbied on behalf of the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) in the 1970s and 1980s. The group was led by Sonia Johnson.
