As with any change, there are supporters and opponents and the Equal Rights Amendment was no different. The main supporter of the amendment was the National Woman 's Party backed by feminists and professional women such as Amelia Earhart. Organized groups such as National Organization for Women and ERAmerica along with a coalition of nearly eighty other mainstream organizations helped push the amendment through the ratification process. National Organization of Women was a compelling advocate claiming, “[the Equal Rights Amendment] is necessary because the Constitution does not explicitly guarantee that the rights it protects are held equally by all citizens regardless of gender and it would provide a clearer judicial standard for deciding
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Then, some women believed suffrage was not enough, women deserved equality, and they wanted that equality written in the Constitution. Alice Paul, a strong feminist turned those words into actions and drafted the Equal Rights Amendment, an amendment that would guarantee equal rights to men and women. It took almost fifty years of submitting the amendment to Congress, but finally, with the help of Representative Martha Griffiths, Congress heard the amendment and passed it, but that was only the first step. Three fourths of the states also had to ratify the amendment and it fell short. However, even though ratification failed, want for equality has not dwindled; women continue to work to pass the amendment. Even though Paul, the first to introduce the Equal Rights Amendment, passed away, her voice still rings out proclaiming equality, “I never doubted that equal rights was the right direction. Most reforms, most problems are complicated. But to me there is nothing complicated about ordinary equality.” Paul kept up her fight for equality until her last breath and that commitment has persuaded others to work just as diligently. Even today, the fight is ongoing. The Equal Rights Amendment is only awaiting three states to join the movement and ratify the amendment; then Paul’s dream will become a
Then, some women believed suffrage was not enough, women deserved equality, and they wanted that equality written in the Constitution. Alice Paul, a strong feminist turned those words into actions and drafted the Equal Rights Amendment, an amendment that would guarantee equal rights to men and women. It took almost fifty years of submitting the amendment to Congress, but finally, with the help of Representative Martha Griffiths, Congress heard the amendment and passed it, but that was only the first step. Three fourths of the states also had to ratify the amendment and it fell short. However, even though ratification failed, want for equality has not dwindled; women continue to work to pass the amendment. Even though Paul, the first to introduce the Equal Rights Amendment, passed away, her voice still rings out proclaiming equality, “I never doubted that equal rights was the right direction. Most reforms, most problems are complicated. But to me there is nothing complicated about ordinary equality.” Paul kept up her fight for equality until her last breath and that commitment has persuaded others to work just as diligently. Even today, the fight is ongoing. The Equal Rights Amendment is only awaiting three states to join the movement and ratify the amendment; then Paul’s dream will become a