Today, Congressman Jerrold Nadler (D-NY), Ranking Member of the House Committee on the Judiciary and longtime cosponsor of Rep. Carolyn Maloney’s (D-NY) bill to add an amendment to the Constitution in order to protect the rights of women, spoke out in favor of the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) at a shadow hearing on Capitol Hill.

The following are Congressman Nadler’s remarks, as prepared, and a video available here:

"Thank you, Carolyn, for your years of dedication to passing the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) and ensuring that the Constitution protects women as full and equal members of society. I have been proud to work with you on this issue, and I appreciate you organizing this hearing today. Thank you, also, to our panel of witnesses who have devoted their careers to women’s rights. In particular, I wish to thank Jessica Lenahan, who suffered an incredibly violent tragedy many years ago and with whom I worked to create funding to better train police to respond to domestic violence issues.  I understand she will tell her story today.

"The ERA is as simple as it is necessary. It clearly and unambiguously enshrines gender equality into our Constitution. It is shocking that nearly 230 years after it was written, and nearly 100 years since the first ERA was introduced, the Constitution still fails to expressly guarantee gender equality. In fact, the US is one of only a handful of countries around that world that does not explicitly protect the rights of women in its constitution.

"There is no question that a clear, unequivocal ERA is long overdue and needed. There are those who would say it is unnecessary, and that the 14^th Amendment protects women just as it does men.  While I agree that the 14^th Amendment should protect women and men equally, I am seriously concerned about relying solely on interpretations of that Amendment by a Supreme Court that continues to veer to the Right.  For instance, just a few years ago, the late Justice Antonin Scalia stated that the 14^th Amendment equal protection guarantee does not prohibit sex discrimination, an interpretation that would leave women and the LGBT community out in the cold. This view does not simply reflect a difference in abstract judicial philosophy. Rather, it poses a very real and tangible threat to the rights of women in this country.

"And those rights already are under constant attack under this administration. It seems that every week, we hear of another protection has been eroded or that another regulation designed to protect women’s health, their paychecks, or their safety has been eliminated. Those policies have real consequences for women’s equality, and yet our Constitution fails explicitly to protect those rights. 

"Threats to women’s equality come not only from this administration.  The revelations of ongoing sexual harassment committed by public figures, including politicians and other office holders, have forced a much-needed reckoning in this country. The reality of how our laws and our society have failed women is finally coming to light. Perhaps that is why earlier this year, Illinois ratified the ERA Congress passed in 1972. With that vote, only one more state needs to ratify that version of the ERA. But Congress has other options – Congresswoman Maloney has introduced a new ERA and Congresswoman Jackie Speier has introduced a bill to eliminate the deadline on the 1972 ERA. Whatever path we take, we must complete this important work and find a way forward to ensure ratification of an ERA once and for all.

"We are on the verge of a breakthrough for equality in this country, despite all the obstacles and barriers presented by our current political and social climate. There is a new understanding that women deserve to have the same consistent, guaranteed rights as everyone else in this country. Adopting the ERA will bring our country closer to truly fulfilling its values of inclusion and equal opportunity for all people.

"Thank you again, Congresswoman Maloney."

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