ERA in the News: April 17-24, 2020
The second episode of Mrs. America explored the connection between the fight for the Equal Rights Amendment and the fight for reproductive rights. Today we are sharing our response to the frequently asked question: How has the ERA been related to reproductive rights?
The repeated claim of opponents that the ERA has the overt effect of requiring government to allow “abortion on demand” misrepresents existing federal and state laws and court decisions.
In federal courts, including the Supreme Court, a number of restrictive laws dealing with contraception and abortion have been invalidated since the mid–20th century based on the constitutional principles of right of privacy and due process, not equal rights. Roe v. Wade (1973) falls squarely in the middle of a line of court decisions expanding the interpretation of individuals’ constitutional "right to privacy" to protect against excessive governmental reach into certain personal decisions in their lives.
State equal rights amendments have been cited in several state court decisions (e.g., in Connecticut and New Mexico) dealing with a very specific issue – whether a state that provides funding to low-income Medicaid-eligible women for childbirth expenses should also be required to fund medically necessary abortions for women in that program. The courts ruled that the state must fund both of those pregnancy-related procedures if it funds either one, in order to prevent the government from using fiscal pressure to influence a woman’s exercise of her right to make medical decisions about her pregnancy. The New Jersey Supreme Court issued a similar decision based on the right of privacy and equal protection, not on the state constitution’s equal rights guarantee.
The presence or absence of a state ERA or equal protection guarantee does not necessarily correlate with a state’s legal climate for reproductive rights. Despite Pennsylvania’s state ERA, the state Supreme Court decided that restrictions on Medicaid funding of abortions were constitutional. The U.S. Supreme Court in separate litigation ( Planned Parenthood v. Casey , 1992) upheld Pennsylvania’s restrictions on abortion under the federal due process clause.
State court decisions on abortion are not conclusive evidence of how federal courts would decide such cases. While some state courts have required Medicaid funding of medically necessary abortions, the U.S. Supreme Court has upheld the constitutionality of the federal “Hyde Amendment,” which prohibits federal government funding of nearly all Medicaid abortions, even medically necessary ones.
Recent Supreme Court decisions on reproductive rights (e.g., Burwell v. Hobby Lobby Stores, Inc. , 2014) have raised concerns about the legal vulnerability of women’s right of privacy to have access to contraception as well as abortion."
Read more ERA FAQs on the website: www.EqualRightsAmendment.org/FAQ
Download this FAQ social media square at: www.equalrightsamendment.org/toolkit
Saturday, May 9, 2020
2pm - 3pm EST
Zoom Video Conference
The Alice Paul Institute is excited to host author and professor Julie Chi-hye Suk for a dynamic conversation about the women who led the fight for the Equal Rights Amendment. In this virtual author talk held via Zoom , Suk will be sharing stories included in her forthcoming book, We the Women: The Unstoppable Mothers of the Equal Rights Amendment .
Register today to hear Suk share the incredible stories of the forgotten women lawmakers and lawyers who shaped the ERA over a century.
About the Author: Julie Suk is a frequent commentator in the media on legal issues affecting women with recent interviews with The New York Times, The Washington Post, Vox, CBS News, and many others. The U.S. House Judiciary Committee cited Suk’s scholarly work on the ERA in its report supporting the removal of the ERA ratification deadline. A professor of sociology, political science, and liberal Studies at The Graduate Center of the City University of New York (CUNY), where she also serves as the academic dean overseeing the Graduate Center’s interdisciplinary master’s programs. Suk earned a J.D. from Yale Law School, where she studied on a Paul & Daisy Soros Fellowship for New Americans and a D.Phil. in Politics from Oxford University, where she held a Marshall Scholarship.
Suk's book will be released in August 2020, and is available for pre-order on Amazon. Click HERE for more information.
Join the Advocacy Committee at the Alice Paul Institute in a social media campaign! Show your love for the Equal Rights Amendment by heading over the the #ERAToolkit and download the amazing resources made for you. This social media campaign is specifically designed to capitalize on the increased attention the ERA is receiving from the Mrs. America series now airing on Hulu. We are creating new items for the ERA Toolkit every day, and are asking all the ERA activists out there to get busy on your favorite social media streams. Help us combat the resurgence of lies and mistruths that will be shared, yet again, about the ERA. Click the button below to download all your favorites today!
We're loving these new social media squares that introduce the real heroes behind the Mrs. America show. Download and share your favorite sheros!
UPDATES ON S.J. RES 6 IN THE SENATE
As elected official across the nation continue to work and respond to the current public health crisis, we will continue to monitor the number co-sponsors on the Senate bill to remove the original time limit on the Equal Rights Amendment.
Co-Sponsors = 48 (same last week)
View the full resolution HERE .
INTERNATIONAL NEWS
Apr. 17 Mrs. America: A Guide to the Equal Rights Amendment and Movement , Den of Geek UK
NATIONAL NEWS
Apr. 17 Mrs. America shows why the implosion of the Equal Rights Amendment still haunts us today , The Verge
Apr. 17 The feminist TV show to watch this weekend , Fortune
Apr. 17 'Mrs. America' and the Forgotten Labor Activists of the Equal Rights Amendment , Rewire.News
Apr. 17 'Mrs. America': Uzo Aduba Reveals That Playing Shirley Chisholm in the New Hulu Series Was 'Intimidating', Showbiz Cheat Sheet
Apr. 17 7 Facts About Trailblazer Shirley Chisholm, the First Black Woman to Run for President, Oprah Mag
Apr. 18 'Mrs. America' founder on the struggle within the Equal Rights Amendment , The News Pocket
Apr. 18 Cate Blanchett's Favorite Movie is Bi Gan's 'Long Day's Journey Into Night,' IndieWire
Apr. 18 Why the Equal Rights Amendment Still Hasn't Been Adopted, Nearly a Century After It Was First Written, Town and Country Mag
Apr. 19 "Mrs. America" and the battle over the Equal Rights Amendment, CBS News
Apr. 19 Who is Phil Crane, the Republican Representative Played by James Marsden in Mrs. America , Elle
Apr. 19 "Sunday Morning" Full Episode 4/19, WCBI
Apr. 21 Here's How the Mrs. America Cast Compares to Their Real-Life Counterparts, PEOPLE
STATE NEWS
CALIFORNIA
Apr. 17 New entertainment available on Hulu, CBS All Access and SYFY , KGET 17
ILLINOIS
Apr. 21 TUNE IN TONIGHT: 'Mrs. America' continues on Hulu, Kenosha News
INDIANA
Apr. 22 Women sound off on Equal Rights Amendment in 'Mrs. America', Observer
MICHIGAN
Apr. 17 What's Playing on Streaming Services This Weekend , Traverse City Record Eagle
NEW JERSEY
Apr. 21 Why Women Haven't Won: The Presidency and the Equal Rights Amendment, Whitehead Journal of Diplomacy
NEW YORK
Apr. 19 NY assemblywoman may be barred from re-election over paperwork error , New York Post
OKLAHOMA
Apr. 18 Equal Rights Amendment , Pauls Valley Daily Democrat
UTAH
Apr. 2 1 Kelly Whited Jones: Utah nurses do too much for too little, Salt Lake Tribune
VIRGINIA
Apr. 17 'Mrs. America' ERA miniseries gives women of color their due , Fredericksburg.com
Apr. 20 'Mrs. America' is a fascinating look at the time s, GoDanRiver
Apr. 21 Poll finds a majority of Virginians support new laws passed by the General Assembly , WHSV
Apr. 21 Lawmakers return to Richmond, protesters expected, WHSV
WASHINGTON
Apr. 19 It's in the PI: How well do you know the history of Seattle's oldest newspaper? , Seattle
OPPOSITION
The Opposition section of the newsletter is intended to inform our subscribers about the arguments against the the ERA. Please be mindful of factual inaccuracies and content warnings for articles that could be hurtful or upsetting.
Apr. 18 Globalist Hollywood seeks to erase Phyllis Schlafly's legacy , World Tribune
Apr. 19 Biological men no longer permitted to compete in Idaho women's sports. Here come the lawsuits , The Blaze
Apr. 21 The Phyllis Schlafly the Left wished was Phyllis Schlafly , NE News Now
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