As you may or may not know, the first day of the Virginia General Assemble is tomorrow, Wednesday, January. It has come to our attention that the Senate Privileges and Elections Committee has decided to call a special meeting tomorrow to vote on both the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) and to repeal Virginia’s Marriage Amendment. We need for you to take action, today!
Note: In the midst of all of this we are excited to announce that we have just approved a CWA of Virginia State Director by the name of Toni DeLancy! She is a phenomenal asset to CWA and has jumped into the fray with both feet! She will be testifying on your behalf tomorrow at the ERA hearing as well as speaking at an ERA press conference on Thursday. She will be officially introducing herself to you in an email to come.
Take Action: Please contact each member of the Senate Privileges and Elections Committee TODAY. Simply ask them to vote NO on the ERA and vote NO on the repeal of the Virginia Marriage Amendment. Click here to view each member of the committee; click on each name for their contact information including a link to easily email them. If you are unable to take action on this until tonight, do not hesitate to email and leave them a message on their office phone. The hearing is to be sometime after noon on Wednesday. Please take action before then.
Please Pray for the members of the committee. Ask the Lord to give them wisdom and courage to do what is right in regard to these two pieces of legislation. Pray for Toni as she prepares for and speaks at both the hearing and the press conference. Pray these two pieces of legislation would be defeated tomorrow.
If passed, the ERA would:
- Add these words to the U.S. Constitution: “Equality of rights under law shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or any State on account of sex.”
- Wipe out all ability to use any laws using gender as a defining characteristic therefore overturn workplace and family laws that protect women; privacy laws that define who may use gender-oriented bathrooms and locker rooms; and religious freedom laws.
- Integrate same-sex and bi-sexual attraction into the U.S. Constitution.
- Be used to write abortion rights into our U.S. Constitution with the rationale that restricting access to abortion is a form of gender discrimination (since it singles women out for a physical aspect unique to them).
- Affect additional areas of life including social security, Medicare, health, insurance benefits, Medicare benefits, and more.
ERA History: In order to be added to the U.S. Constitution, the ERA needed approval by legislatures in three-fourths (38) of the 50 states by 1979. To date 37 states have ratified the ERA, two of which were after the 1979 deadline. If one more state ratifies it, the U.S. Constitution can be amended if a suspension were given.
Click here to read ERA talking points.
Virginia Marriage Amendment History: The Marshall-Newman Amendment, also referred to as the Virginia Marriage Amendment, is an amendment to the Constitution of Virginia that defines marriage as solely between one man and one woman and bans recognition of any legal status “approximat[ing] the design, qualities, significance, or effects of marriage.” The amendment was ratified by 57% of the voters on November 7, 2006. It became part of the state Constitution as Section 15-A of Article 1. In 2014, the amendment was ruled unconstitutional in Bostic v. Schaefer. At this point, even though a repeal would not change the current statutes, if the Supreme Court in the future were to overturn the current verdict, Virginia would no longer have a marriage amendment to put into effect.
Thank you in advance for your diligent prayers and actions. Please pass this email on to others and encourage them to immediately pray and act as well.
Tanya Ditty
National Field Director
Concerned Women for America