Legislator pushing to get ERA ratified in Arkansas

Legislator pushing to get ERA ratified in Arkansas

Effort to pass Constitutional Amendment renewed in recent years

By Ralph Hardin

ralphhardin@gmail.com A Constitutional Amendment more than 40 years in the making could be getting closer to becoming a reality.

The Equal Rights Amendment was passed by Congress in 1972 and in the immediate years following its passage, 34 states ratified it. However, the effort stalled short of the 38 states needed to actually amend the U.S.

Constitution.

In fact, no state ratified the amendment between 1977 and 2017, when the Nevada Legislature ratified it. Then, just last year, the Illinois Legislature ratified the ERA, bringing the total number of states to 37.

That means only one more state would need to ratify the amendment for it to officially become the 28th Amendment to the Constitution.

Arkansas is now presented with a historic opportunity. Arkansas has the chance to be that 38th state to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment. Arkansas has a chance to make history, and to enshrine the rights of women in the U.S.

Constitution. Women are not officially recognized in the U.S. Constitution, but Arkansas has a chance to make that change. State Senator Joyce Elliott (DLittle Rock) is introducing a resolution for Arkansas to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment.

The Equal Rights Amendment says, “Equality of rights under the law shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex.”

“The law is overdue, culturally and legally. Many Americans assume that the United States already has gender-equality rules. After all, the Civil Rights Act, Title IX and the Equal Pay Act all offer protections against discrimination. But these are pieces of legislation. New laws and Supreme Court rulings can diminish their power.

There is nothing at the constitutional level that specifically addresses the rights of women, outside of the 19th Amendment, which guarantees women the right to vote.

An equal rights amendment would give constitutional power to sex-based discrimination claims.

Proponents say it is long over due, with women lacking constitutional protection for over 200 years.

Opponents say the amendment is no longer necessary, with no need to single out a particular gender for special protections as the U.S. Constitution already provides equal protection for all under the law.

This resolution is likely to be heard this morning, at 10 a.m. in the Senate State Agencies Committee.