On January 15, 2020, Virginia became the critical 38th state to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment, or ERA—a proposed amendment to the U.S. Constitution that reads: “Equality of rights under the law shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any state on account of sex.”  Virginia’s ratification raised important questions about the viability of an amendment that had been stymied for decades. 

What does the promise of the ERA hold in the continued battle for equality and freedom? What roles have women of color played to secure the ERA? In the wake of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s death, what is the modern platform for women’s equality? 

 
Helping us to sort out these questions (and more) are very special guests:
 

• Jennifer Carroll Foy, a member of the Virginia House of Delegates who is running for governor in the state of Virginia. She joined the Virginia House of Delegates in 2017 where she led Virginia’s effort to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment, passed legislation to combat Virginia’s teacher shortage, and voted to expand Medicaid to 400,000 Virginians. She established the Virginia for Everyone PAC to help elect women, people of color and millennials to the Virginia General Assembly and was one of the first African American women to graduate from Virginia Military Institute. 
• Ellie Smeal, the co-founder and president of the Feminist Majority and the Feminist Majority Foundation and former president of the National Organization for Women. She has led efforts for the economic, political and social equality and empowerment of women worldwide for over three decades.   
• Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton, the 48th Lieutenant Governor of Illinois. She leads the Justice, Equity and Opportunity Initiative, and chairs the Illinois Council on Women and Girls, the Governor’s Rural Affairs Council, the Military Economic Development Council and the Illinois River Coordinating Council.  Previously, she represented the 5th District in the Illinois House of Representatives.   
• Julie Suk, a Florence Rogatz visiting professor of law at Yale Law School and professor of sociology, political science and liberal studies at The Graduate Center of the City University of New York (CUNY). She most recently published, "We the Women: The Unstoppable Mothers of the Equal Rights Amendment" and is a frequent commentator in the media on legal issues affecting women. 

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Check out this episode’s landing page at MsMagazine.com for a full transcript, links to articles referenced in this episode, further reading and ways to take action.