In 1975, in Huntsville, AL, the wife of the principal where my daughter went to school thrust a wad of papers in my hand and told me I needed to read them. I saluted smartly and took them home to read.
SIDEBAR: I literally DID NOT KNOW the world of politics existed. Don't know if my parents ever voted and there was no political talk at home. The material was about PROPOSED EQUAL RIGHTS AMENDMENT TO THE US CONSTITUTION.
Section 1: Equality of rights under the law shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any state on account of sex.
Section 2: The Congress shall have the power to enforce, by appropriate legislation, the provisions of this article.
I read the background material, some of which was written by Phyllis Schlafly, who was a stranger to me then. I thought it was ridiculous and thought: "Surely 'somebody' is going to defeat this". Next thing I remember is showing up at 4:30am to get on a bus to Montgomery, the AL capitol. I don't remember much after that, except within a couple of years I started a chapter of Eagle Forum in Huntsville. We worked with other Eagle Forum members and conservatives all over the country to stop the ratification of this proposed amendment. Moved to Lexington, KY, 1979; came to Nashville in 1986 - still working to keep states from ratifying this proposed amendment and finally WE WON!!!
The Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) was passed by Congress on March 22, 1972:
House vote: 354 yeas, 24 nays, and 51 not voting
Senate vote: 84 yeas, 8 nays, and 7 not voting
The ERA was sent to the states for ratification, but it fell short of the required 38 states by the June 30, 1982 deadline.
As I recall, (this was before I moved here)Tennessee ratified the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) in 1973 without a lot of hearings and when the public began to understand what that would really mean, that information brought out the opposition and thanks to the leadership of Phyllis Schlafly, Tottie Ellis and Shirley Curry, (both of whom helped Phyllis Schlafly establish Eagle Forum), Tennessee RESCINDED the vote on April 23, 1974.
These anti-ERA battles have been some of the most difficult and drawn out things I think I have ever seen in my 50 years (as of next year.) We took our responsibility seriously and did not give up.
I give you that background because in the 114th Tennessee General Assembly, Rep. Aftyn Behn, District 51, has introduced HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION 5, A RESOLUTION to propose an amendment to Article I of the Constitution of Tennessee, to ensure equality of
rights based on sex.
So FIFTY YEARS LATER, we will still be working to DEFEAT as ERA effort. See background articles below!!
I know there was Black Friday, Cyber Monday, Giving Tuesday and on it goes, but can we count on you to make a donation to help us continue this effort and other issues coming that will either need support or opposition??
As you review these articles, remember, this effort is for a STATE ERA. not a FEDERAL ERA, but this information can help us understand many of the potential consequences.
Also, please recall that most of the effort to pass the federal ERA AFTER the 1982 deadline was about getting the right to ABORTION into the US Constitution. Just like the opposition to the original ERA, the truth is we WON'T KNOW exactly WHAT we would get if HJR 0005 was ratified. We would probably have many trips to the court to find out!!
Women Will Not Be ERAsed
March 22, 2022
by Anne Schlafly Cori
It was fifty years ago today that the Equal Rights Amendment passed Congress with a supermajority and was sent to the states for ratification — March 22, 1972.
The simplicity of the language was its undoing. “Equality of rights under the law shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any state on account of sex.” In 1972, everyone understood that “sex” meant biological sex. Fifty years later, the definition of sex has expanded to include orientation and identity. Note that the amendment never mentions “women”.
A reporter from National Public Radio asked me the following question:
“When we talked about how the definition of “sex” would be very broad if the ERA were passed today, possibly including transgendered people, you said: “If you blur the distinction between male and female, it is the vulnerable females who are most at risk, whether it’s athletics or in elementary schools or in prisons or in women’s shelters.” Were you talking specifically about transgendered people or other nontraditional gender identities as well?”
“Sex” confuses everyone, including NPR reporters. What is a “nontraditional gender identity” and is that a brand-new class of people demanding special rights? ERA will never become a part of the U.S. Constitution for multiple reasons, including its effect on abortion laws and the military draft. Today, the transgender movement is boldly attempting to erase women. If anyone can declare to be a woman, then “woman” no longer exists.
Eagle Forum celebrates this day, the fiftieth anniversary, because it is the birth of Eagle Forum. The majority of American women rejected ERA in the 1970s, because they understood that it would bring them no benefits but cause lots of harms. Eagle Forum represents and advocates for women and we reject the notion that women are interchangeable with men. ERA is an attempt to erase women, but the members of Eagle Forum understand biology and we will not allow women to be erased.
On this date 43 years ago, I stood with my mother, Phyllis Schlafly, at the Shoreham Hotel in Washington, D.C., in celebrating the defeat of the Equal Rights Amendment. It was a victory for all women. The ERA proponents are still suing to force ERA into the Constitution, but they cannot even muster enough support for ERA to pass Congress.
For fifty years, Eagle Forum has supported women and defended the rights of women! Join us, because girls and women are under assault by an ideology that discourages fertility, undermines marriage, and actively harms females by denying them safe spaces separate from biological males.
Eagle Forum, led by Phyllis Schlafly, successfully defeated ERA. Two generations later, our vital mission continues and I am honored to be part of this important work.
Anne Schlafly Cori is the daughter of Phyllis Schlafly (1924-2016), and Chairman of Eagle Forum.
Members of Tennessee’s 134th Air Refueling Wing Awarded Distinguished Flying Cross for Flight Mission in Israel
December 11, 2024 Kaitlin Housler
Eleven members of Tennessee’s 134th Air Refueling Wing were awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross on Saturday for their “heroic actions” during a flight mission conducted earlier this year in Israel.
On April 13, members of the 134th deployed at Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar completed Operation True Promise, which was a coordinated defense effort in response to a historic missile and drone assault by Iran on Israel.
The attack, which involved over 300 ballistic missiles, cruise missiles, and unmanned aerial systems in a single strike, was intercepted by members of the 134th aircrews who enabled U.S. and allied fighter jets to prevent massive casualties.
The 134th crews “offloaded hundreds of thousands of pounds of fuel, enabling the F-15s to intercept and neutralize the majority of the threats” over the course of the mission, according to the 134th Air Refueling Wing Public Affairs.
Approximately 99 percent of the missiles and drones launched by Iran were intercepted and no lives were lost, Israeli military reports later confirmed.
Saturday’s ceremony, held at McGhee Tyson Air National Guard Base, honored Lt. Col. Willis Parker, Maj. Lance Welch, Maj. Stacy Sells, Maj. Cody Gaby, Capt. Andrew Weber, Capt. James Spearman, Capt. Joshua Johnson, Tech. Sgt. Hunter Ricks, Tech. Sgt. Gage Seymour, Tech. Sgt. Joshua Osborne, and Senior Airman Jonah Parham for their roles during the operation.
“These Airmen exemplify the highest standards of courage and professionalism. Their actions not only safeguarded lives but also demonstrated the strength of our commitment to our allies and global stability,” U.S. Air National Guard Brig. Gen. Lee Hartley, Tennessee Assistant Adjutant General said during Saturday’s ceremony.
The Distinguished Flying Cross was authorized by Congress in 1926 and is awarded for heroism or extraordinary achievement during aerial flight – a distinction that recognizes acts that “go beyond routine operations.”
Kaitlin Housler is a reporter at The Tennessee Star and The Star News Network. Follow Kaitlin on X / Twitter.
Photo “134th Air Refueling Wing Awarded Distinguished Flying Cross” by USAF.
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