EQUAL RIGHTS AMENDMENT

WHEREAS, when the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) is placed in the United States Constitution, it will enhance the dignity of all humankind by proclaiming in written law the equality of men and women; and

WHEREAS, the American Federation of Teachers has actively worked for many years for ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment to the United States Constitution; and

WHEREAS, work on ratification stopped after a deadline in time was met; and

WHEREAS, it is now recognized that time limitations on ratification are political and not legal; and

WHEREAS, the Madison Amendment was added to the United States Constitution recently after it was ratified 203 years after introduction and Congress judged it to be worthy of passage; and

WHEREAS, only three more states are needed for ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment; and

WHEREAS, work is going forward in some of the 15 unratified states:

RESOLVED, that the American Federation of Teachers give a very high priority to work on ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment; and

RESOLVED, that the American Federation of Teachers request the AFL-CIO to give a very high priority to ratification of the ERA; and

RESOLVED, that the American Federation of Teachers use its powers in the unratified states of Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Oklahoma, North Carolina, Nevada, South Carolina, Utah and Virginia to make certain that the ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment has a very high priority on their legislative agendas; and

RESOLVED, that the American Federation of Teachers encourage the AFL-CIO and all affiliated labor bodies to work for the ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment.