{"id":348,"date":"2020-04-15T08:45:19","date_gmt":"2020-04-15T12:45:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.library.unt.edu\/yesterdays-news\/?p=348"},"modified":"2020-04-15T08:45:19","modified_gmt":"2020-04-15T12:45:19","slug":"equal-rights-amendment","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.library.unt.edu\/yesterdays-news\/2020\/04\/15\/equal-rights-amendment\/","title":{"rendered":"Equal Rights Amendment"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) was first introduced to the U.S. Congress in 1923. It was designed to guarantee equal legal rights for women especially in matters of divorce, property, and employment among other matters.<\/p>\r\n

During the 1960s, with the first wave of feminism, the ERA regained support and was reintroduced to and approved by the U.S. House of Representatives in 1971, and was approved by the U.S. Senate in 1972. This approval moved the amendment to the state legislatures for ratification. The original deadline for states to ratify this amendment was March 22, 1979, with 38 states needed to amend the U.S. Constitution.<\/p>\r\n

There was a major push by the National Organization for Women (NOW) to support ratification of the ERA. This KXAS script describes then NOW President Betty Friedan campaigning in Fort Worth for women to use their political voice to support ERA ratification, in 1970.<\/p>\r\n\r\n

\"yellow<\/a>

News Script: Women’s equality campaign, September 14, 1970.<\/p><\/div>\r\n\r\n

A number of states that originally ratified the amendment rescinded it in the late 1970s. Texas voted to ratify the ERA in 1972, and later voted down an attempt to rescind the amendment.<\/p>\r\n