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Explore the Equal Rights Amendment

The Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) is a constitutional amendment, passed by Congress in 1972 and ratified by 38 states states, which provides:

“Equality of rights under the law shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any state on account of sex.”

It ensures equality under the law, which is a foundational principle of human rights. It would rectify the intentional exclusion of women from our nation’s founding document and prohibit sex-based discrimination. The vast majority of Americans support the ERA, and most believe we’ve already adopted it. The U.S. is one of only 25 nations worldwide that still lacks this type of provision.

For Faith Leaders

Sign the Interfaith Statement of Support for the ERA

For All of Us

Tell Your Representative: Support the Equal Rights Amendment

For All of Us

Sign a Petition Supporting the Equal Rights Amendment

For All of Us

Tell Congress: Support the ERA Now Resolution

The ERA Reflects Christian Values

Created in God’s divine image, all human beings have sacred dignity and worth. All people deserve respect for their inherent human rights, including equality under the law. 

In Christian tradition, women have been judges, apostles, and witnesses to the resurrected Christ. They have been preachers and mystics, defenders and reformers of the faith. 

We worship a Christ who welcomed all people and took their concerns seriously; we cannot accept a constitution that excludes women, girls, and LGBTQIA+ people.

“There is no longer Jew or Greek, there is no longer slave or free, there is no longer male and female; for all of you are one in Christ Jesus.” Galatians 3:28

Women and LGBTQIA+ Americans suffer grave injustices—and our current system is ill-equipped to stop them.

The ERA Will Benefit Individuals, Families, and Communities

The ERA will enable Congress to pass laws addressing pervasive problems like intimate partner violence, workplace sexual harassment, and pregnancy and pay discrimination. It will provide a mandate for laws and policies that support mothers and all parents in combining paid work with family caregiving.

The ERA will also guard against sex-based discrimination, applying the same legal standard that prohibits discrimination based on race or religion.

In the U.S. and around the world, history has shown that when women’s rights are protected, their children, their families, and all of society benefits.

Do you want equal rights enshined in the U.S. Constition?

“Ending sexism and including women fully in every aspect of society not only ends its own great evil—the oppression of women—but also is part of the solution to the rest of the world’s problems.”

The Most Reverend Desmond Tutu, Archbishop Emeritus of Capetown

“I urge all the people of the country to join me in correcting a basic defect in the American Constitution in providing equal rights for the women of our country.”

—Jimmy Carter, Former U.S. President, Lifelong Baptist, Sunday School Teacher

Learn More About the ERA

FAQs

If you’re new to the Equal Rights Amendment and eager to learn more about the promise it holds, review these helpful Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs).

You’ll learn about how the ERA aligns with both human rights principles and Christian theology, and what the ERA would (and would not) do. We even delve into some opposing opinions and showcase why the ERA is an Amendment that everyone can support.

Articles

Why the US Senate needs to affirm equal rights for all citizens
Religion News Service
By Allyson McKinney Timm, Tarunjit Singh Butalia, and Lisa Sharon Harper
April 2023

The Amendment that Refuses to Die
Sojourners
By Allyson McKinney Timm
March 2023

Now more than ever: Let’s get the ERA finalized
Religion News Service
By Ani Zonneveld, Lisa Sharon Harper, Mary E. Hunt, Valarie Kaur, Sharon Brous, Allyson McKinney Timm
August 26, 2022

To Reduce Abortion Humanly and Justly, People of Faith Should Back the ERA
Baptist News Global
By Allyson McKinney Timm and Meghan Tschanz
March 23, 2022

In the Name of Liberty For All, Basic Human Rights for Women Must Be Protected
The Columbus Dispatch
By Tarunjit Singh Butalia, Allyson McKinney Timm and Rev. Jack Sullivan, Jr.
July 6, 2021

Will the ERA Threaten Religious Liberty?
Sojourners 
By Rose Marie Berger, by Allyson McKinney Timm Paola Fuentes Gleghorn
June 28, 2021

This Mother’s Day, Let’s Work to Change the Constitution
Sojourners 
By Paola Fuentes Gleghorn
May 6, 2021

If We are Equal Before God, We Must be Equal Before the State
Sojourners 
By Allyson McKinney Timm
March 18, 2021

Will the U.S. Finally Approve the ERA?
Sojourners 
By Paola Fuentes Gleghorn and Jeff Fuentes Gleghorn
January 2021

 

Interviews

Change: Achieving Equality & the #Faith4ERA Campaign
A World of Difference Podcast
January 27, 2022

Let’s Talk About the ERA!
With The New Evangelicals on Instagram Live
January 27, 2022

Kitchen Table Convo: The ERA
With Lisa Sharon Harper on Instagram Live
May 7, 2021

The ERA
Freedom Road Podcast
May 7, 2021

 

Other Resources

#Faith4ERA Judiciary Committee Statement
February 28, 2023