USA News: Certainly! Here's a revised version of the headline: Biden Declares Equal Rights Amendment Ratified: What It Means and What Comes Next

 

Equal Rights Amendment supporters demonstrate outside Virginia State Capitol in Richmond, Va., on Jan. 8, 2020. Steve Helber /AP Photo

President Joe Biden announced on January 17 that the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA), first proposed over a century ago, is now the "law of the land."

The legal impact of Biden's declaration remains a matter of dispute.

In a statement issued just three days before the conclusion of his presidency, Biden emphasized his longstanding support for the ERA, stating, "For more than 50 years, I have championed this amendment, and we, as a nation, must finally affirm and protect women’s full equality."

The president stated that the final obstacle to formally adopting the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) into the U.S. Constitution was cleared in January 2020, when the Virginia General Assembly voted to ratify it.

With three-fourths of the states having ratified the amendment, Biden asserted that "leading legal constitutional scholars" agree the ERA has become part of the Constitution, though he did not cite specific scholars.

“The 28th Amendment is now the law of the land, ensuring all Americans are guaranteed equal rights and protections under the law, regardless of their sex,” he declared.

What Is the Equal Rights Amendment?

The Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) was first introduced in Congress in 1923, three years after the 19th Amendment granted women the right to vote. According to the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA), proponents argued that the ERA would establish full equality for women by eliminating legal distinctions between men and women in areas such as divorce, property rights, employment, and other issues.

According to the agency, women have made significant progress in American society despite the ERA not being formally added to the Constitution.

“Women gradually achieved greater equality through legal victories that advanced the expansion of rights, including the Voting Rights Act of 1965, which ultimately secured the right to vote for all women,” the agency stated.

The current version of the ERA, consisting of 52 words, is championed by supporters as a measure that would enshrine equal rights for women within the Constitution.