Law Commons^™

The Era Brief October 2021, Center For Gender And Sexuality Law

Center for Gender & Sexuality Law

We are excited to return to campus and rejoin the vibrant law school community. Our work at the ERA Project has taken on a renewed sense of urgency as we seek to advance sex equality in a time when the right to bodily autonomy is under threat from restrictions on reproductive and transgender rights.

The Equal Rights Amendment And The Equality Act: Talking Points, Center For Gender And Sexuality Law

Center for Gender & Sexuality Law

The Equal Rights Amendment, first proposed nearly 100 years ago, is still needed today.

• The ERA is a constitutional amendment that would protect against discrimination on the basis of sex—including on the basis of sexual orientation, gender identity, and gender expression.
• The ERA would also usher in advancements in sex equality in all three branches of government, empower advocates, and encourage recognition of related forms of discrimination such as pregnancy discrimination.
• By including the ERA in our Constitution, the United States would catch up with the more than 100 other countries with constitutional protections against sex-based discrimination.

The Equal Rights Amendment And The Equality Act: Two Equality Measures Explained, Center For Gender And Sexuality Law

Center for Gender & Sexuality Law

When the United States Constitution was written in 1787, its defining phrase “We the people” did not include women, LGBTQ+ people, people of color, or immigrants. In 2021, these groups, among others, still lack fundamental equality under the law. Two pieces of legislation are pending in Congress that would strengthen legal protections against discrimination based on sex, sexual orientation, and gender identity: the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) and the Equality Act.

The Era Brief June 2021, Center For Gender And Sexuality Law

Center for Gender & Sexuality Law

At the ERA Project we get asked all the time: “Why do we need the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA)?” “Doesn’t the Constitution already prohibit sex discrimination?” “What difference would it make to add explicit sex discrimination protections in the Constitution as the 28th Amendment?”

Columbia Law School Era Project Faq On Legal Issues Surrounding Final Ratification Of The Equal Rights Amendment, Center For Gender And Sexuality Law

Center for Gender & Sexuality Law

New York, New York – On March 17, 2021, the House of Representatives has scheduled a vote on House Joint Resolution 17, a measure that would remove any deadline for ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) and, as a consequence, would make the ERA finalized and valid at the moment when it has been ratified by 3/4 of the state legislatures. There are many complex legal issues surrounding the finalization of the ERA, and Columbia Law School’s Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) Project has prepared a FAQ that explains the history of ERA ratification, what HJR 17 will do, and …