How Did Alice Paul Ratize The Ratification Of The Equal Rights Movement

Derek I Snedden POLS-Y 353 Professor Fowler 20 July 2015 Eagle Forum: The Pro-family movement The Eagle forum was founded by Phyllis Schlafly in 1972 and began as a trust fund to defend conservative agendas in 1967. During the proposal of the Equal Rights Amendment in 1972, Schlafly founded a group with more proactive approach called “Stop ERA” with one goal in mind, to defeat the ratification of ERA. After the success of the “Stop ERA” campaign, Phyllis Schlafly founded the eagle forum, a pro family group dedicated to “opposing all encroachments against American sovereignty through…feminist goals” (Schlafly). Althoug the primary interaction that eagle forum has had with the womens movement was the ERA, they also are incessantly combating

Knauer, Christine. “Equal Rights Amendment (ERA).” Encyclopedia of Women and American Politics. By Lynne E. Ford. 2015 ed.

It is for the Woman’s Party to decide whether there is any way in which it can serve in the struggle which lies ahead to remove the remaining forms of woman’s subordination” (Alice Paul, The Suffragist, 1921) Thereafter began a new battle, the Equal Rights

Since the 15th amendment, giving African American right to vote, was passed during the 1970s, countless women have claimed to have the right to vote. However, rather than passing the right to vote for women, the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) was introduced, which means that men and women have equal rights under the law. In the TV show “Firing Line”, Mrs. Schlafy believes that ERA would bring many undesired changes to American women. Therefore, she strongly opposed the ERA. Mrs. Schlafly was more successful at presenting her argument than her opponent because she uses several rhetorical devices such as audience, tone, and evidence to support her argument.

Many say that the movement failed because of the fear that gender roles and family values would be infringed upon by the passage of this amendment. Other’s felt that there was no need for it due to the recent Supreme Court cases, i.e. Roe v. Wade, which made way for a broadened spectrum of women’s rights. It is on this topic of why exactly the ERA failed that Mary Frances Berry focuses her attention, by examining why the movement failed and how future reformers can learn from the mistakes of the ERA. Berry analyzes the failure of the ERA in both legal and historical terms. She claims that due to the difficulty of amending the Constitution, in order for any amendment to be ratified there needs to be a sweeping consensus and a sense of urgency among Americans that this is an issue

During the period of 1900 to 1920, Progressive Era reforms included women’s determination for suffrage, labor restrictions, and the Square Deal as means of bringing about reform at a national level; however, there were limitations stopping each reformer from gaining the desired change. There were countless women’s organization in existence that embraced the reform, which lead to the efforts for change. The National Women's Suffrage Organization, the General Federation of Women’s Club, and National Women’s Party are just a few among them. Elizabeth Stanton, Lucretia Mott, Susan B. Anthony, and other activists formed these organizations that raised public awareness and lobbied the government to grant women the right to vote. (H)

Alice Paul empowered women all across the world to fight for women’s suffrage. Alice Paul is a brave woman who fought for what she believed in and persevere through anything that came in her way. Paul formed organizations to spread the word about women’s suffrage and to get people on board to support their cause. Alice Paul protested using many tactics such as marches, rallies, hunger strikes, and picketing outside of White House. Alice Paul is a woman who fought for women’s suffrage through the formation of organizations, assembling protests, rallies, parades and the ratification of the 19th amendment.

Women have always wanted equal rights and fought to gain equality. On August 1920 the 19th amendment was ratified into the Constitution. The 19th amendment stated that no one will be denied the right to vote based on your sex. This changed everything for the women in the US. Women everywhere started to work more and started to rely less on men.

Equal Rights “We have talked long enough in this country about equal rights it is time now to write the next chapter- and to write it in the books of laws.” Lyndon B. Johnson. An Equal Right amendment was first passed by women political party in 1923. It didn’t pass and it took four decades for a revival into congress. It seemed like it was going to be passed back in 1971 when it was approved by ⅔ vote from the House of Representatives in October of that year.

Assessments of STOP ERA are mixed, with scholars acknowledging that the organization effectively utilized regional and state based sentiment to shift national public opinion against the once strongly supported Constitutional Amendment. To this end, there is broad agreement that without Schlafly and the STOP ERA campaign the Equal Rights Amendment would likely have been ratified in the 1970s. Schlafly 's campaign is also credited with shifting the Republican Party 's platform on the ERA and women in 1980, which led to a majority of that demographic supporting the Democratic Party by 1992. In addition, the STOP ERA campaign solidified Phyllis Schlafly 's position as an effective opponent of liberal policies, and one of the most significant women in modern American politics.

For generations now, powerful and brave women in the United States have cajoled citizens, members of Congress and government officials to ratify a Constitutional amendment that states “Equality of rights under the law shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any state on account of sex.” In 1923, during the 75th anniversary of the 1848 Women’s Rights convention in Seneca Falls, women’s rights activist Alice Paul created the “Lucretia Mott Amendment” which would grant men and women equal rights throughout the United States. On March 22, 1972, the amendment now titled the “Equal Rights Amendment” passed the U.S Senate and House of Representatives and was to be sent to the states for approval. However, once the seven-year deadline on the ratification process came to an end in 1979, the amendment’s proponents lacked the ratification by 38 states and thus the proposed 27th amendment for equal rights was terminated. The ERA advocates continue to work together and utilize each other's resources in hope to finally pass the bill.

“To supporters of mothers' pensions and laws limiting women's hours of labor, which the ERA would sweep away, the proposal represented a giant step backward”.(Foner, 766) However in the end the amendment failed. “The ERA campaign failed, and only six states ratified

The amendment does not contain clarity regarding the rights of women, it does not express the claim that women seek to make. Society views women as people who stay home, cook, clean and care for the children. The male in the family is solely the provider and if the ERA is passed women will not be able to do what society entitles them to

During Progressive Era, there were many reforms that occurred, such as Child Labor Reform or Pure Food and Drug Act. Women Suffrage Movement was the last remarkable reform, and it was fighting about the right of women to vote, which was basically about women’s right movement. Many great leaders – Elizabeth Cad Stanton and Susan B. Anthony - formed the National American Women Suffrage Association (NAWSA). Although those influential leaders faced hardship during this movement, they never gave up and kept trying their best. This movement was occurred in New York that has a huge impact on the whole United States.

Alice wanted a national amendment whereas the NAWSA wanted to focus on state campaigns. The NAWSA supported President Wilson but Alice blamed him for the continued disenfranchisement of women. So in 1914 she formed the National Woman’s Party (NWP) and cut all ties with the NAWSA. “The NWP organized “Silent Sentinels” to stand outside the White House holding banners inscribed with incendiary phrases directed toward President Wilson” (Carol, Myers, Lindman, n.d., National Woman 's Party, Picketing and Prison, para 1). They continued their picketing through World War 1 and many thought of them as unpatriotic.