It Isn’t Too Late To Ratify ERA
Posted by Michelle Moquin on August 26th, 2014
Good morning!
Robert I: Thanks for posting your comment. Obama is the first president who truly wants the diversity of this country to have an equal voice, and who doesn’t put money and his race ahead of others like all the past presidents did, and what the repubs are currently trying to do. Repubs will ruin this country and the world, which include their own friends and family, because of their deeply rooted racism and their obsession of money and retaining white power.
Carole: Although I hardly ever take a bus these days, I used to and I despised waiting at a bus stop for that exact reason. It’s so uncomfortable waiting there. Now I get harassed the most when I am getting gas. How I wish we still had gas attendants so I didn’t have to get out of the car to pump. What it is with men and gas pumps? (No need to answer the obvious.)
I also get harassed when I am just walking by myself. Rarely if I am with a man. (Alison: I think you nailed it.) However, like you Madeline, I had a boyfriend who would jump on a guy’s throat for just looking at me. I didn’t like it but I was too young then to know why he was reacting that way. It took me to be out of that relationship for years to discover just how much of a “owned little piece of meat” I was to him.
Yes Hoyt, it is that bad. See Natalie’s comment.
Tarub: Well said. I believe that if men in this country could do what the men in the Middle East do to their women, they would.
Well, in light of my comments, onto today’s write, From SF Gate:
Equal Rights Amendment ratification long overdue
Our Constitution granted women the right to vote 94 years ago, but efforts to ban discrimination based on sex have never earned constitutional status. This gaping legal hole was summed up recently by conservative U.S. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia: “Certainly the Constitution does not require (discrimination on the basis of sex). The only issue is whether it prohibits it. It doesn’t.”
Women today aren’t guaranteed equal pay for equal work and are subjected to restrictions on contraception and family planning services, unfair workplace conditions and laws that favor the perpetrators over victims in cases of sexual assault. The need for constitutionally guaranteed equality remains shamefully overdue. How can we have “liberty and justice for all” when a prohibition against sex discrimination is missing from our nation’s blueprint?
The Equal Rights Amendment was introduced in every session of Congress from 1923 until 1972, the year it finally passed. The amendment required ratification by 38 states, but fell three states short.
The 15 states that have not ratified the ERA are Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Nevada, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Utah, and Virginia. The Illinois Senatepassed the ERA in May and the Illinois House is set to vote on it in November.
The ERA would provide women with remedies to combat discrimination in pay equity, pregnancy accommodations, contraceptive coverage and domestic violence. Currently, women face a double burden when they are victimized. They must first prove the violation happened, and then they must also prove intent to discriminate based on sex. The ERA would banish this “intent” requirement forever.
As U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg stated, “I would like my granddaughters, when they pick up the Constitution, to see that notion – that women and men are persons of equal stature.”
And so I have introduced House Joint Resolution 113 to eliminate the deadline for ERA ratification.
The ERA has had its deadline moved in the past; the 27th Amendment (congressional pay), was ratified 202 years after it passed Congress. When states tried to rescind their support for the 14th and 15th Amendments, their efforts were struck down by the courts; therefore, the 35 states that have already voted for the ERA cannot take back their support.
Equality is only three states and 24 words away. It’s time for these words to be made constitutional law: “Equality of rights under the law shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any state on account of sex.”
If you’re a local Bay Area Girl:
Show your support
Join in Women’s Equality Day to demand that women and men be equal in the eyes of the law.
When: 3:30 p.m. Tuesday.
Where: Courthouse Square (outside the San Mateo County History Museum), Redwood City.
*****
Readers: Liberty and justice for all was never meant for anyone except a few white men. Women were certainly not included in that “for all”…nor any OTWs.
Uma: Love it.
Rita: Thank you, twice. :) By the way, did you coin MSD’s or am I just not with it? Either way, I like it. I also like the term “evil villainaires.”
Thoughts? Blog me.
Peace baby.
Lastly, greed over a great story is surfacing from my “loyal”(?) readers. With all this back and forth about who owns what, that appears on my blog, let me reiterate that all material posted on my blog becomes the sole property of my blog. If you want to reserve any proprietary rights don’t post it to my blog. I will prominently display this caveat on my blog from now on to remind those who may have forgotten this notice.
Gratefully your blog host,
michelle
Aka BABE: We all know what this means by now :)
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August 26th, 2014 at 10:51 am
ERA will never happen as long as white women are the majority. Most of us follow lock-step our misogynistic men.
August 26th, 2014 at 10:53 am
I over heard a conversation between my friend and her boyfriend my friend is black and her boo is white. They broke up and all of a sudden she became a crazy, ghetto, weave wearing, crispy looking chic, (according to him) anyway her question to me was do white men really think of black women that way. Is that all they see is a loud and crazy person.
My Answer to Her Was:
Part of a racist attack on Black communities is to kill the man and sexually exploit the woman. Think “Monster’s Ball.” Strom Thurmond, Justin Volpe, are perfect examples of this. (Google them)
The Jim Crow Ferris Museum website shows that these stereotypes called “Mammy” and “Jezebel” started in minstrel shows to hide the fact that White men raped Black women during slavery. They felt that by telling people that Black women were either undesirable, or loose, would convince everyone that it was not possible for a White man to want them sexually or could justify raping them.
The stereotypes against Black women also exist to make them feel uncomfortable that they are strong, and that they set their own standard of beauty. I am glad that Black women don’t usually conform, despite aggressive advertisements, to the anorexic, skeletal standard of beauty and submissiveness. Those who try it look like they are losing their souls and becoming mannequins.
Black women are far too sophisticated for that kind of thing. They have powerful souls, well-defined curves rather than flat dimensions, beautiful hair and voices, firm rather than flabby bodies mostly despite their build, deep expressive eyes, and the nicest skin.
Regardless of their build, they look exceptionally gorgeous. However, when Black people possess a good trait, White people typically try to pretend it is not good until someone of another race possesses the trait. For example, look at the big deal they make of Angelina Jolie’s full lips after several plastic surgeries. Most Black women are born with full lips.
Not to mention, Lopez’s so-called curves after numerous surgeries. Even Beyonce is given props because she is light skinned. It is not popular for White people to praise the beauty of Black people out loud. White people who are racist do everything to possess the traits they make Black people feel uncomfortable with.
It is just like when someone is jealous of something you are wearing, and does everything they can to make you feel uncomfortable with it. The irony is that as we get rid of our good traits, they take them as they did with our music. The problem is the racial caste system. Most people who are brainwashed by White media’s stereotypes believe that the closer one is to being White, the more good looking he or she is.
Others who know that this is BS pretend to think it is true. When travelling with my fiance, I see other women of other races looking at her angrily as if she has something that belongs to them. It is because she looks good, and they believe that she is too Black to look good.
Then I see White men with their wives looking at her, and sometimes try to sneak in subtle comments to make her feel like I am beneath her because they believe the most beautiful minority women should be their mistresses. Well, we can take this up another time.
Ebony magazine exposed the fact that recently, Black models are meeting resistance from designers and are disappearing from the scene. Not to mention the fact that many magazines lighten the skin of their models in real life or in the photos, or destroy their hair.
Moreover, companies market products like skin creams and weaves to help create, feed, and profit from an insecurity.
White men who choose Black women and believe they are beneath them do so because they know that they can exploit and abuse a woman who feels she is less than him, and she will not leave him. In fact, back in the day, they set up Quadroon Balls and practiced placage. White men who no White women wanted went to these dances to find a light-skinned social climber with no career alternatives to be his mistress.
(Thomas Jefferson had a mixed race mistress named Sally Hemmings, and yet argued over the percentage of Black blood that contaminates a person. Darker Black women were more often raped secretly because it was a stigma to desire Black women openly.
Anyway, placage continues not only in today’s movies, but in places like Forrest Hills, Queens. You can see old White men and White men no White woman would give a second look walking with young and gorgeous Black, Asian, Latino, and Indian women.
And no, they are not with him because of his personality. Anyway, if I was there when that crackpot said that, I would have busted his mouth and asked that arrogant fool where he came from because life began in Africa.
August 26th, 2014 at 11:09 am
Thankfully – women do make up a greater percentage of the popular vote – and there are many woman, even conservative woman, speaking out against the recent SCOTUS rulings.
Fortunately for liberals/progressives/democrats – the GOP cannot help but continue to show their true colors by their actions – and their words – on this subject. The more they talk, the more people realize how utterly crazy they seem to be.
If we can unite for this ERA, we will show men that our bodies are ours not to be tampered with by men.
August 26th, 2014 at 2:44 pm
Tiff #2: I read your comment and was drawn deeply into your explanation of the white man’s attitude toward having a relationship with a woman of color. The importance as to the depth of that color as well. I found your entire comment to be of high social significance.
I must admit to having to look up the history of the setting up of Quadroon Balls and the practice of placage. Both of which were found on the same page of Wikipedia.
Racism is such an ugly term, regardless of who thinks they are somehow better than whomever. This all reminded me very much of all the fuss on Michelle’s Blog earlier this week, with white men pointing out all the flaws in our First Ladies appearance.
First of all her appearance, which happens to be absolutely gorgeous, has nothing to do with anything. She is The First Lady of these United States, the Presidents Wife, and that position demands a lot of respect from every citizen of this nation.
Thank you for a well worded history lesson.
Al
August 26th, 2014 at 5:19 pm
NATION OF ISRAEL:
You must listen to my comment. ISIS is a group of experienced militants who have taken a lrge amount of the Nerve Toxin called SARIN from Iraq. They are disciplined Soldiers and plan on destroying Israel.
When they are ready and have the missiles, they will certainly be pointed at Isreal. They will have the ability to kill 80% of the Israeli population with these Sarin Missiles.
Please listen to me and protect the Nation of Israel from an attack by ISIS. Do whatever it takes to wipe them off the face of the Earth.
Luv, HOWIE
August 27th, 2014 at 6:22 am
Al#4, are you a college professor?
August 27th, 2014 at 6:29 am
Julia#1:
There is no other reason we as women can’t get ERA passed other than white women don’t think women should be equal to men in all things.
Why most of the women of my race think like that is a mystery to me, but there it is.
August 27th, 2014 at 6:36 am
Is it possible for someone to explain why so many dialysis patients die in a particular state regardless of the city in the state.
August 27th, 2014 at 6:47 am
This country has such a terrible history when it comes to anyone challenging white men to gain equal rights with them. They are adept at dividing any group that tries to attain parity with them.
Their tactics have worked with American white women by making being a “feminist” a dirty word. So many women go around denying they are feminist and attempting to come up with another description for what the want which is simply to be treated equally in this country.
The only thing women got out of it was to find that now they are prosecuted for statutory rape just as men are. But as usual they receive mush harsher sentences than white men who commit violent rapes.
August 27th, 2014 at 7:13 am
Hafa Adai:
Michelle, your article on ERA bring to mind Guam’s fight for equality. The indigenous people of Guam are called Chamorros.
We are planning on having a vote to determine what we Chamorros want to do with our lives on Guam. That is we want to determine whether Guam should stay a U.S. territory or become a state, commonwealth, independent country or something else.
Guam is presently a territory of the United States. Guam was ceded to the US by the Treaty of Paris 1898 and formally purchased from Spain for $20 million in 1899.
The vote is limited to people who fit the legal definition of Chamorro as American citizens who gained citizenship through the Organic Act of Guam in 1950.
Along comes the white boy who discriminates everywhere he can muster the superior numbers to use his vote advantage to the detriment of OTWs to claim our wanting to vote on our determination violates his voting rights and the U.S. Constitution.
Notice that is the same Constitution that won’t give women in his country ERA, or equal rights.
So now Guam is hosting the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for arguments for the first time in 12 years. Why now?
Because some white boy says his rights are being denied. Never mind OTWs and white women on the mainland can’t get any court to take up their cries for inequality. When a white boy complains something has to be done.
So move the court to Guam and fuck over the Chamorros. Show them that the white boy is still America’s Affirmative Action Beneficiary. Show any who dare challenge that, the government will continue to use its power to keep them privileged.
So even though the lawsuit was thrown out because the vote has not been scheduled, the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals is considering hearing this white boy’s complaint.
Is it any wonder that for the rest of America the cry form most of the OTWS and the few white women who can think for themselves, is fuck the gringo.
August 27th, 2014 at 4:13 pm
Ellen#8, look at how many of the death had “dementia” The prevalence of dementia in these patients increases with age from 18yr to 44 year. Demnsia is 10 time more likely with increased age especially past 60′s.
Also how many in the Guam and Saiapan were “sudden Cardiac arrest deaths”? ”Risk of cardiac arrest in dialysis patients is related to age and dialysis duration” (US Renal Disease Data System)
Data also indicates a connection between potassium levels in a patient’s dialysate prescription and sudden cardiac death.
Patients who suffered a cardiac arrest during dialysis were twice as likely to be on low-potassium dialysate versus higher levels of potassium, which were associated with the best survival rates.