What is it about?
Leading feminist scholars and activists come together to discuss their perspectives on whether we need an Equal Rights Amendment in the 21st Century, or whether the new century requires that we invest our energies in other spaces.
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Why is it important?
This article shows that while some activists and authors feel that the Equal Rights Amendment is critically needed for women to gain equality in the United States in the 21st Century, others argue that there are different spaces where we need to invest our political, financial, and activist resources to be inclusive of more people who face continued barriers to access. This troubles historic and dominant ideas about the ERA, its origin, and its continued importance.
Perspectives
This article emerged from a national conference in 2013 held at Roger Williams University titled "The ERA in the 21st Century: Where have we come from, and where will we go?" It brought together multigenerational groups of people who discussed and debated the role of the ERA as a symbol of past losses, and the possibility of moving ahead in way that is inclusive of more people who face continued barriers to access. Part of the contemporary critique is that the ERA is weighed down with vestiges of heterosexism, cissexism, and racial inequity - since the primary advocates and authors of the bill have been white, cisgender women. I learned a lot from the process of bringing this diverse group of folks together on this topic, and have been pushed to see things in new ways based on their perspectives.
Laura D'Amore
Roger Williams University
Read the Original
This page is a summary of: ERA Roundtable, Frontiers A Journal of Women Studies, January 2017, Project Muse,
DOI: 10.5250/fronjwomestud.38.2.0001.
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