Dear John,

As August got underway, the president, many local and state leaders and many businesses redoubled their efforts in the fight against the virus, announcing tough new policies on vaccinations, mask mandates and other measures. While many of us cheered the stronger efforts to stamp out the brutal pandemic, a faction of the country–most notably, Trump loyalists–decided to double down on politicizing these vital public health measures.  

In a conversation this week with Ms. contributor Jackson Katz, I brought up Florida governor Ron DeSantis’s and Fox News host Tucker Carlson’s rants against simple mask mandates. Jackson reminded me of his earlier analysis for Ms.: “There’s no way to understand Trumpism without understanding it as a manifestation of the need a lot of white men have to project masculine strength at all costs for fear of being perceived as soft, weak and feminine.”  

This is the same misguided thinking that fuels the culture of grievance and resentment and that drove the January 6 insurrection. And it’s the same thinking that motivates state lawmakers who push voter suppression laws and attack teaching in public schools about injustices based on race and gender. 

And when you understand this, it’s clear how our work at Ms. and the work of the feminist movement is more urgent today than ever. 

This week, Ms. continued reporting on women’s rights and social justice groups’ drive for bolstering “human infrastructure” funding in congressional spending bills. A broad coalition has embarked on a 13-city bus tour to rally support for a national paid leave policy, as part of President Biden's proposed $3.5 trillion American Families Plan, which also includes universal preschool, an extension of the child tax credit, expansion of Medicare, funding for child care and much more.

Speaker Nancy Pelosi joined the groups at the bus tour’s stop in Washington, D.C., exclaiming “It’s about time. It’s about time that we get all of this done!” The good news–recent polls show that two-thirds (66 percent) of all voters back passage of the plan, according to Data for Progress.

Also this week, we reported on Equal Pay Day for Black women, which this year fell on August 3. That means, on average, Black women in the U.S. must work 19 months in order to earn what white men earn in 12 months. In a town hall organized by the ERA Coalition, speaker after speaker emphasized how final ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment is critical to closing the pay gap for Black women. 

And finally, I want to call your attention to our reporting on a delegation of ERA activists and leaders–led by civil rights, labor and women’s rights icon Dolores Huerta–that delivered 15,000 letters and postcards to the Phoenix field office of Arizona Senator Kyrsten Sinema. The delegation urged the senator to align with her fellow progressives and help end or reform the filibuster to clear the way for the ERA to be added to the U.S. Constitution.

“I drove all the way from California to be here today,” Huerta told Ms., “because we know how important this is and we are depending on Sinema to be our champion. She’s always been a champion of women’s rights, but now is a moment of truth.”

Despite the challenges, feminists are determined to shape our future. This is our moment of truth, and with so much at stake, we must persist. Here at Ms., we are making August the month when we redouble our efforts in the drive for democracy and justice. 

For equality,

Kathy Spillar
Executive Editor