Why the ERA Must Be Validated by the Supreme Court
Why the ERA Must Be Recognized Now
The ERA was fully ratified on January 27, 2020, when Virginia became the 38th and final necessary state to ratify it under Article V. Yet the ERA has not been published or enforced, largely because of an OLC opinion and executive inaction. Since then, multiple unjust things have occurred without the benefit of the ERA!
The Legal Path
• 1 U.S.C. § 106b requires the Archivist to publish an amendment after 38 state ratifications, but former AG Bill Barr obtained an OLC opinion, which is not a court order, that only applies to the Executive Branch to wrongfully say it could not be published in 2020.
• Presidents must “take care” that laws are faithfully executed (Article II), but both Presidents blocked it from publication in the Federal Register (that would put it in the U.S. Constitution) unjustly.
• A Supreme Court Order will validate that the ERA is the 28th Amendment as it has met all the requirements of Article V of the U.S. Constitution.
What Supreme Court Recognition Unlocks
• It is an Order from the country’s highest Court that has the last word on what the Constitution means and protects
• The ERA is a constitutional tool to end sex discrimination
• It provides far stronger protection for women and children in custody cases across country
• It will require clear “STRICT SCRUTINY” standards for courts and federal and state government laws and actions (and inactions) nationwide
WHAT IS STRICT SCRUTINY & WHY IT IS CRITICAL FOR THE COURTS TO DECLARE THAT DISCRIMINATION BASED ON SEX REQUIRE STRICT SCRUTINY REVIEW.
Resources - Here are the types of discrimination the ERA will cure:
• Watch Equal Means Equal, an award-winning documentary (graphic used with permission)
Equal Means Equal explains why women have never had close to full equality in the U.S. and why women need it now — more than ever. The Director of that documentary, the indefatigable Kamala Lopez, is also the Founder & President of the most-effective ERA organization in the country, Equal Means Equal (“EME”). EME has done much ERA litigation, see Legal Actions. EME is also suing to get the ERA validated by the U.S. Supreme Court. Currently, their case is in federal trial court, and there is a hearing upcoming on 11/17/25.
Join EME, and please make give tax-deductible donations for its multiple ERA campaigns and legal efforts, and work together in national coalition with other ERA proponents to help bring awareness to the ERA and our fight to end 250 years of unconscionable discrimination against women. Arlaine Rockey is a Legal Advisor to EME and fully supports our collective, multi-pronged effort to have the ERA validated as the 28th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.