INSTITUTE INDEX: Equal Rights Amendment revival comes to the South
Sponsors and supporters of legislation to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment banning sex discrimination by federal and state governments gathered at the North Carolina General Assembly earlier this month to speak about the measure and urge its passage. Only one more state is needed to ratify the amendment for it to be enshrined in the U.S. Constitution. (Image is a still from this ERA-NC Alliance video.)
(Editor's note: This index was updated on March 18 to include the bill introduced in Mississippi, which died in committee.)
Number of states that have ratified the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA), which declares that "equality of rights under the law shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any state on account of sex": 37
Number of additional states that need to ratify the amendment for it to be enshrined in the U.S. Constitution: 1
Of the 13 states that haven't ratified the ERA, number in the South: 9
Number of states where ERA ratification legislation was introduced this year: 9*
Of those eight states, number that are in the South: 7
Year in which Congress passed the ERA, initially introduced in 1923 by two Kansas Republicans, and sent it to the states for ratification: 1972
Before renewed momentum for the ERA under the Trump presidency led to ratification by Nevada in 2017 and Illinois in 2018, number of years during which there was no progress on the amendment in the states: 40**
Date on which a ratification proposal failed in the Arkansas Senate, where opponents made dubious claims such as the ERA would lower the age of consent and abolish alimony: 3/7/2019
Date of "crossover day" in the Georgia legislature by which bills need to have passed one chamber and moved to the next, a deadline the ERA legislation missed: 3/7/2019
Date on which the Democrat-controlled Virginia Senate voted to ratify the amendment, with seven Republicans voting with all of the Democrats: 1/15/2019
Date on which Virginia's Republican-controlled House of Delegates killed the ERA proposal, with House Majority Leader Todd Gilbert arguing that it would "oppress" abortion opponents: 2/21/2019
Percent of Virginians who support ERA ratification: 81
Date on which the city of Charleston passed a resolution urging the South Carolina legislature to ratify the amendment: 2/12/2019
Date on which ERA ratification bills filed in the Florida legislature earlier this year were referred to the House and Senate judiciary committees: 3/5/2019
Date on which ERA ratification bills were filed in the North Carolina House and Senate: 3/5/2019
Under an arbitrary deadline added to the amendment in Congress back in 1972 by opponents Sen. Sam Ervin and Rep. Emanuel Celler, Democrats from North Carolina and New York respectively, number of years states had to ratify the amendment: 7
Date on which the New York Times reported that a congressional effort to lift that deadline was underway: 2/22/2019
* Arizona, Arkansas, Georgia, Florida, Mississippi, Missouri, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Virginia.
** Before Nevada, the last state to ratify it was Indiana in 1977.
(Click on figure to go to source.)
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Sue Sturgis
Sue is the editorial director of Facing South and the Institute for Southern Studies.