The Concept of Women as Property Still Plagues Us

by Dolores Klein, Peoria, IL

State Representative Lou Lang recently spoke at a celebration of Women’s Equality Day, a national recognition of the addition in 1920 to the U.S. constitution of the 19th Amendment. He is dedicated to the ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment, which was passed during the Nixon Administration, supported by both political parties, and ratified by 35 states before being stopped in Illinois on June 22, 1982. A group of religious women fasted for 37 days, on behalf of women hungering after justice. Another group of women chained themselves to the governor’s doors in Springfield, on behalf of women excluded from power.

Students of the history of the 19th Amendment know how long it took, how ardently it was opposed, and how much dedication it required for women’s suffrage to become reality. This country should not then be surprised, that a campaign is ongoing in dedication to the Ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment.

Suffragist Alice Paul introduced it in 1923, saying that she was taught that when you put your hand to the plough, you don’t take it off until the end of the row. She died in 1978, at the height of our struggle, just as Susan B. Anthony died before the passage of the 19th Amendment.

Laws are not guarantees: progress we have made can be amended, repealed and eroded. Current laws were enacted without the force of the Constitution. Less than half the states have constitutional equal protection amendments. None of the federal agencies, Congress, the Military, etc. are affected by state E.R.A.’s. Crossing a state line to change residence or jobs or to go to college, can negatively affect our gender rights. The concept of Women as Property still plagues us as part of our culture, without this Amendment. It is not just another law!

All those excluded from the original Constitution have been added over the years: Except women … With the Vote, we can succeed. We want to see that day, in our lifetime. Lou Lang is an example to men who see women’s equality as a human rights issue.