To the editor:
Do you remember the old commercials for Virginia Slims cigarettes? The slogan in their jingle was, "You've come a long way, baby."
Well, they lied. Thanks to what's called second wave feminism in the 1960s and 1970s, women made some great strides, but those have been overshadowed by the rise of the patriarchy, which continues to push back against women's rights. When it comes to those rights, the sure path to guarantee constitutional equality for women is to publish the already-ratified Equal Rights Amendment into the Constitution as the 28th amendment.
"Equality of rights under the law shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex." To women and their allies, did you know that your country actually does consider you a second-class citizen? The only constitutional protection women have is the right to vote, and that's only happened in the last 100 years. As a state officer with the Ohio Chapter of the National Organization for Women, I am consistently shocked at how many women do not know the sad state of our status in America.
The ERA has been ratified and ready for publication for several years now, yet remains in limbo because men in power refuse to act. When I wrote a letter to the editor about the ERA, I was harshly criticized by a local elected official, who did not even realize that his response letter was full of misconceptions and misinformation. So, here are a few well researched facts from constitutional attorneys: 38 states were needed to ratify the ERA. That number was reached in January 2020 when Virginia became the 38th state to ratify it. Yet, President Donald Trump ordered it to be ignored and President Joe Biden has not called the constitutional archivist to do their job and publish it.
When published, it will allow legislation to be passed to stop the wage gap, to keep a woman's health care decisions between her and her medical providers, to stop the practice of higher insurance premiums for women, to stop women's lack of constitutional standing being used against them in child custody cases. These are among so many other rights that we should have had decades ago. Women pay the same taxes, they have the same responsibilities and are bound by the same laws, but don't have the same protections.
Monday will be observed as Women's Equality Day. Let's take this day to shed the chains that define us as second-class citizens and call on Biden to use this day to make history by ordering the publication of the ERA as the 28th Amendment. Let's make sure that Kamala Harris has full constitutional equality when she becomes our 47th president.
After all, the Virgin Mary gets a mention in the Quran, but American women can't get a mention in our Constitution? Let's change that, and remember this famous quote, "If you are not at the table, then you're probably on the menu."
Marjie DeFede
Rayland