11/18/2019
Passage of legislation in Virginia would mean 38 states have ratified the Equal Rights Amendment, meeting the Constitutional requirement
Richmond, VA – Today, Senator Jennifer McClellan (D-Richmond) introduces legislation for the Commonwealth of Virginia to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment to the United States Constitution. If this bill is passed by the Senate and House of Delegates during the 2020 legislative session, Virginia will become the 38th state to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment, giving the amendment the constitutionally-required ratification by three quarters of the states.
Sen. McClellan’s bill will parallel similar efforts by Sen. Mamie Locke (D-Hampton) and Democrats in the House to pass the ERA into law, a bill that in 2019 passed the Senate but failed to clear a GOP-controlled House subcommittee on a party-line vote.
“Virginia is ready to make history,” said Senator Jennifer McClellan. “It’s time to finally ratify the Equal Rights Amendment and bring our nation one step closer towards equality.
“I want my daughter and son – and every daughter and son in America – to grow up in a country where equal rights for women are enshrined in our Constitution,” McClellan said. “It will be poetic justice to pass this historic equal rights law in 2020, the year that marks the 100-year anniversary of the 19th amendment, which guarantees women’s suffrage.”
“The Virginia Senate has passed a resolution to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment six times since 2011. We look forward to a seventh and final passage, followed by an epic celebration as the majority of American citizens will finally, specifically, have a promise of equality of rights under the law,” said Kati Hornung, Campaign Coordinator of VAratifyERA.
The ERA strengthens protections against discrimination on the basis of sex. Ratifying the ERA in Virginia paves the way for constitutional equality for all American citizens regardless of sex.
