US History

Contemporary United States (1968 to the present)

Social Movements

Women

Law and Government

This collection uses primary sources to explore the Equal Rights Amendment.

A portrait of suffragist Alice Paul, who first introduced the Equal Rights Amendment, ca. 1923.

Representative Martha Griffiths’s petition for a congressional committee to consider an Equal Rights Amendment, 1970.

An “Uppity Women Unite” button in support of the Equal Rights Amendment.

A 1973 cartoon by Tom Engelhardt showing a man holding the Equal Rights Amendment while rolling pins and frying pans are thrown at him.

An excerpt from a pamphlet titled “The Equal Rights Amendment: Questions and Answers,” produced by the Michigan Women’s Commission, 1973.

A 1982 cartoon by Kate Salley Palmer satirizing shifting gender roles in relation to the Equal Rights Amendment.

An excerpt from a statement on the Equal Rights Amendment by the US Commission on Civil Rights, 1978.

A statement by Representative Barbara Jordan on May 18, 1978, requesting an extension of the 1979 deadline for ERA ratification.

When Congress passed the Equal Rights Amendment in 1972, it set a seven-year deadline for ratification by the states. In the spring of 1978, as the deadline approached, Representative Barbara Jordan of Texas was one of the congressional leaders advocating for a three-year extension in order to allow more time for the remaining required states to approve the amendment.


A photograph of supporters and opponents of the Equal Rights Amendment observing as the Georgia Senate voted on it, January 21, 1980.

A video clip of news footage of an Equal Rights Amendment rally in Fort Worth, Texas, 1981.

A 1982 cartoon by Kate Salley Palmer satirizing opponents of the Equal Rights Amendment and gender stereotypes.

A photograph of Los Angeles mayor Tom Bradley speaking at a NOW rally for the Equal Rights Amendment, 1982.

An audio clip of Phyllis Schlafly, an opponent of the Equal Rights Amendment, speaking about women’s role in society, 1972.

Questions

1. Using the sources in this set, describe the justifications used to oppose to the Equal Rights Amendment. 
2. Examine the [button](http://dp.la/primary-source-sets/the-equal-rights-amendment/sources/1201). What does the word “uppity” mean? What does it suggest in the context of the ERA? How were supporters of the ERA changing the connotation of the word “uppity”?
3. Consider the [cartoon by Tom Engelhardt](http://dp.la/primary-source-sets/the-equal-rights-amendment/sources/1202), the [cartoon by Kate Salley Palmer satirizing shifting gender roles](http://dp.la/primary-source-sets/the-equal-rights-amendment/sources/1204), and the [cartoon by Kate Salley Palmer satirizing opponents of the Equal Rights Amendment](http://dp.la/primary-source-sets/the-equal-rights-amendment/sources/1209). Who were the audiences for these cartoons? How does each cartoon comment on the ERA? What makes the political cartoon an effective medium for this commentary?
4. Use [Martha Griffiths’s petition](http://dp.la/primary-source-sets/the-equal-rights-amendment/sources/1200), the [Michigan Women’s Commission pamphlet](http://dp.la/primary-source-sets/the-equal-rights-amendment/sources/1203), and the [statement by Representative Barbara Jordan](http://dp.la/primary-source-sets/the-equal-rights-amendment/sources/1206) to describe the ratification process and its obstacles for ERA supporters.
5. Consider the [photograph of supporters and opponents](http://dp.la/primary-source-sets/the-equal-rights-amendment/sources/1207), the [footage of an Equal Rights Amendment rally](http://dp.la/primary-source-sets/the-equal-rights-amendment/sources/1208), the [photograph of Tom Bradley](http://dp.la/primary-source-sets/the-equal-rights-amendment/sources/1210), and the [clip of Phyllis Schlafly](http://dp.la/primary-source-sets/the-equal-rights-amendment/sources/1211). What do these sources suggest about who actively supported the ERA and who actively opposed it? 
6. Closely read the [statement by the US Commission on Civil Rights](http://dp.la/primary-source-sets/the-equal-rights-amendment/sources/1205). For what historical reasons does this report support the passage of the ERA?


Activity

Although the Equal Rights Amendment failed to receive the necessary number of state ratifications and was not adopted, the issues it represents remain important to many contemporary feminists. Review the information in the [statement by the US Commission on Civil Rights](http://dp.la/primary-source-sets/the-equal-rights-amendment/sources/1205) and ask students to do research to update its findings with contemporary information and statistics about marriage and divorce laws, women’s pay and sex-based discrimination in the workforce, specific protection for women in criminal law, and women’s equality in education. With this new research, ask students to draft individual letters to their Congressional representative outlining their findings and making a case for the ERA’s contemporary relevance or irrelevance. If students favor a new, updated version of the ERA, encourage them to propose broad changes in the letter.

Teaching Guide: Exploring the Equal Rights Amendment

Resources

1. [Martha Griffiths and the Equal Rights Amendment](https://www.archives.gov/legislative/features/griffiths/), the National Archives and Records Administration. 
2. [The Long Road to Equality: What Women Won from the ERA Ratification Effort](https://memory.loc.gov/ammem/awhhtml/aw03e/aw03e.html), American Women, the Library of Congress. 
3. [The History Behind the Equal Rights Amendment](http://www.equalrightsamendment.org/history.htm), equalrightsamendment.org. 
4. Ravitz, Jessica, “[The New Women Warriors: Reviving the Fight for Equal Rights](http://www.cnn.com/2015/04/02/us/new-womens-equal-rights-movement/),” CNN. 
5. Mergel, Sarah Katherine, “[From Victory to Defeat: The Equal Rights Amendment](http://werehistory.org/women/),” We’re History. 

Overview

First written by suffragist Alice Paul in 1923, the Equal Rights Amendment was a proposed amendment to the US Constitution that would guarantee equal rights for women and give Congress the power to enforce legal equality between men and women. The amendment was introduced for consideration in every congressional session between 1923 and 1970 without ever being presented for a vote (except in 1946, when it was defeated in the Senate). 

During the 1960s, second-wave feminism gained momentum and a new generation of activists addressed a broad range of obstacles to women’s rights and equality in the home and workplace. Representative Martha Griffiths sponsored the Equal Rights Amendment for congressional consideration in 1970. Two years later, the amendment passed in the House of Representatives and the Senate and was submitted to state legislatures, three-fourths of which needed to ratify the amendment in order for it to become part of the Constitution. 

The National Organization for Women (NOW), established in 1966, was one of the organizations that took a leading role in this movement and the campaign for the passage of the Equal Rights Amendment. While many states ratified the amendment right away, it also ignited sharp debate, including among women and feminists. As the amendment approached its ratification deadline in 1979, thirty of the thirty-eight required states had ratified it and Congress granted an extension of the deadline until 1982. Despite years of protest and advocacy by NOW and other organizations, no additional states ratified the amendment during the extension period and the amendment was not adopted. This primary source set uses photographs, ephemera, political cartoons, video clips, and other documents to explore the women’s rights activism inspired by the Equal Rights Amendment. 

English

The Equal Rights Amendment

equal-rights-amendment_06_f8cd1e14e6b51297807cf4e0ec078720.jpg

Courtesy of University of South Carolina, South Carolina Political Collections via South Carolina Digital Library.

Palmer, Salley Kate, “Equal Rights Amendment,” Digital Public Library of America, https://dp.la/item/e5c375f9c0e73a9861d6ba0655d4cfe5.

A 1982 cartoon by Kate Salley Palmer satirizing shifting gender roles in relation to the Equal Rights Amendment.

Cite this item

Tips for Students

Item 6 of 13 in the Primary Source Set The Equal Rights Amendment