On the recordMarch 17, 2021
Today, we confront one of America's lingering legacies of discrimination. At America's founding, women were intentionally left out of the Constitution and, as second-class citizens, we did not have the right to vote or own property. Today, we still receive less pay for the same work, and we face actual or imminent threats of violence and harassment daily. But the equal rights amendment rejects that. After over a century, the ERA is on the cusp of ratification, and we finally have a President who will make this long overdue provision of our Constitution a reality. Women's rights should not depend on which party is in power. These basic fundamental rights must be guaranteed. We must secure equality for women under the law, in the Constitution, and in our daily lives. If we want to hand a more perfect union over to our daughters--and I have two--this Women's History Month, let's seize the moment and end sex discrimination once and for all. I urge a ``yes'' vote on this resolution to remove the arbitrary and outdated deadline for ratifying the ERA.
