Statement from NOW President Toni Van Pelt:

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The march towards constitutional equality for women made up for years of lost ground today, as House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerrold Nadler’s resolution to eliminate the ratification deadline for the Equal Rights Amendment was voted out of the committee.  

NOW has been on the front lines of advocacy for the ERA for nearly 50 years.  Most recently, we helped get out the vote in Virginia to change control of the state legislature and clear the way for it to become the 38th and final state needed to ratify the amendment.  

Chairman Nadler’s resolution will remove a seven-year ratification deadline that many ERA advocates back in 1972 thought was an effort to kill the amendment. While we believe that this step is not necessary for the ERA to officially become an amendment to the U.S. Constitution, removal of the deadline will be extra insurance if the ERA is challenged in court by opponents of equality.  

The ERA is a priority for millions of women, and it is a priority for NOW.  Congress needs to fix what’s missing in our Constitution and finally declare that equal means equal, for everyone.  We salute Chairman Nadler and his colleagues for today’s step towards enshrining the ERA in the constitution. Women can be proud of what they have accomplished. 

Contact

Kimberly Hayes, Press Secretary, press@now.org, 202-570-4745

Statement from NOW President Toni Van Pelt and VA NOW President Connie Cordovilla:

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The results of the Virginia elections are a resounding affirmation of the power of grassroots action.  NOW made electing a Virginia legislature that will protect women a top priority, and our members did what they do best.  They organized, networked, knocked on doors, volunteered in campaigns, took voters to the polls—whatever it took to win this much-needed victory for Virginia—especially for Virginia women. 

The new Democratic leadership of the legislature has pledged to bring ratification of the ERA back for a vote, after it fell just one vote short earlier this year.  A constitutional amendment requires ratification by two-thirds of the state legislatures—or 38–and Virginia’s vote will achieve that goal. 

NOW works at both the national and state levels to achieve enduring change and strengthen women’s rights. Our victory in Virginia opens the curtain on a year of electoral activism unlike anything in NOW’s history.  Our members are fired up and ready to go to put equality, reproductive rights and women’s justice at the front of the political agenda in 2020—and make Donald Trump a one-term President. 

Contact

Kimberly Hayes, Press Secretary, press@now.org, 202-570-4745

Statement from NOW President Toni Van Pelt:

WASHINGTON, D.C. – A past marked by violent oppression and exclusion, and a future left open for today’s leaders to mold– that’s what we observe during Native American Heritage Month.  

At present, two Native American women serve in Congress. Deb Haaland (Laguna-Pueblo) of New Mexico and Sharice Davis (Ho-Chunk Nation) of Kansas are the historical faces of long overdue change. These women prove that indigenous women are leaders of our country’s future.   

But more needs to be done to demand a better future for women and people in tribal communities. According to a study by the National Congress of American Indians, 84.3% of American Indian and Native Alaskan women have experienced violence in their lifetime – the majority of whom have suffered at the hands of non-white partners. On top of that, health care in tribal communities is severely underprioritized, putting women’s reproductive health especially at risk.   

As much as Native American Heritage Month means celebrating past accomplishments, it also asks us to make it our mission to create a better future. This can be done by rallying for the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) and prioritizing safe and accessible birth control, especially in Indian Country. NOW is a fierce proponent of both of these issues, recognizing the vitality of changing this narrative marked by insufficient protections for Native American women.  

This November, and all year round, we stand in solidarity with Native American activists to stop the erasure of indigenous women and their suffering. 

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Contact

Kimberly Hayes, Press Secretary, press@now.org, 202-570-4745