John, this email is a little bit longer than one we typically send, but trust us, it’s for a very important reason. We hope you’ll read on.

Last Thursday, Democrats in Congress renewed efforts to move the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) forward and finalize its place in the U.S. Constitution, putting the issue of gender equality front and center.

As we all know, this historic measure holds more significance now than ever post Roe. Even though Pew Research Center found that 80% of Americans support its addition to the Constitution — no surprise here — Republicans consider the ERA a threat to their inhumane and out-of-touch desire to systematically eliminate our fundamental rights, including reproductive and LGBTQ+ freedoms.

Here’s a recap of the ERA and its course since 1923:

December 13, 1923:

• The ERA is introduced as the 28th Amendment in the Constitution to protect women and other marginalized genders from discrimination (see the image of this historic document from the National Archives at the end of this email).

March 22, 1972

• The constitutionally required two-thirds of both the House and the Senate approved the measure, submitting the ERA to its next required step: ratification by at least 38 states.

May 30, 2018

• The ERA remained at a standstill for nearly 40 years. Following Illinois’ ratification in 2018, Virginia followed suit in 2020 and the ERA reached the required 38-state ratification requirement. Illinois’ leadership and a powerful coalition of advocates for the ERA across the country made it happen.

Nearly 100 years since the ERA’s introduction

• The White House has yet to recognize the ERA as our 28th Amendment — it must be published by the U.S. archivist, as part of their ministerial duties, for it to be officially adopted. It boils down to a simple matter of completing the paperwork.
• Now that Congress is deciding its fate, Republicans have launched attack after attack to block and derail progress.

We know exactly why Republicans in Congress are going through so much trouble to obstruct the ERA’s guarantee of equal rights for all Americans regardless of sex. The party of chaos knows that passing the amendment could fuel our fight for reproductive freedom and help protect abortion rights so they’re fighting us every step of the way.

The bottom line: 
The ERA has satisfied the necessary constitutional requirements for its addition to the U.S. Constitution. The law will enshrine equal rights in the Constitution as stated in the 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.”

John, Illinois and advocates have helped get the Equal Rights Amendment this far. Now, a century since its introduction, we need more voices to amplify the call for the White House to officially recognize the ERA as our 28th Amendment. Will you sign your name to our petition — in the name of constitutional equality — calling on the White House to finish the job?

SIGN YOUR NAME

Thank you for joining our call. We can get this done if we work together.

— Team Underwood

P.S. Here’s the joint resolution of the Equal Rights Amendment dated December 13, 1923: