Pass Equal Rights Amendment

Equal rights activists are lobbying for an addition to the U.S. Constitution that guarantees equal rights to women.

In 1972, Congress approved the words: “Equality of rights under the law shall not be denied by the United States or by any state on account of sex.” At the time, only 35 states ratified it by the 1982 deadline. Three more states were needed in order to ratify it to the Constitution.

More than 20 years later, this country is long overdue for an amendment that guarantees equal rights to women. With companies forbidden to discriminate against everything from age to sexual preferences and religion, it’s about time the Constitution guaranteed equal rights to women.

Supporters of reviving the effort are assuming the 35 original ratifications are still valid. They are now focusing their efforts on getting three more states to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment. The activists want one of these states to be Florida.

This amendment should be passed through the House, the Senate and then to the governor quickly. Ralph Haben, a former House speaker, said that he regretted voting against the amendment years ago, a St. Petersbug Times report said. It’s upsetting there wasn’t enough support for the amendment years ago, and now there is no reason for its passing to be a question.

Rep. Arthenia Joyner, D-Tampa, is sponsoring the bill and has 23 co-sponsors. So far, the bill hasn’t been given to a committee. In order for the Senate to have the chance to vote on the bill, it must be passed by a majority vote of the House.

Inequality trends are documented in the Ultimate Field Guide to the U.S. Economy. It said women receive about 76 cents for every dollar a man earned. If this bill is ratified, American women will finally be granted the rights to which they have always been entitled.

Anyone interested in supporting this bill can write to his or her local House Representative. To find out who that is, visit www.myflorida.com where representatives are listed by district.