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[St. Paul, MN, January 25, 2019] At a historic hearing Thursday, February 24th, the House Government Operations Committee voted to pass out of committee the Minnesota Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) (HF13 authored by Representative Mary Kunesh-Podein) and the Resolution to Congress to remove the deadline on the national ERA (HF71 authored by Representative Rena Moran). This is the first time the ERA has been heard and moved forward in the House since 1983. The state amendment would simply add “Equality under the law shall not be abridged or denied on account of gender” to Minnesota’s Constitution. “Having these thirteen words on the ballot will give Minnesotans the opportunity to choose whether or not they want to live in a state where all people are equal under the law,” said M. Kathleen Murphy, Vice-President of ERA Minnesota and founder of the CAFE Coalition. “Our Constitution is the truest and most lasting statement of our fundamental values, and it is not only fitting but crucial that equality for all be enshrined there. It is only by these means that we can live up to our rhetoric and build the future all of our children deserve,” said Ramsey County Commissioner Trista MatasCastillo during her testimony.  Ramsey County Commissioner Trista MatasCastillo Testifies before the Government Operations Committee To be on the statewide ballot in 2020 the proposed Constitutional amendment needs a simple majority in both the Minnesota House and Senate. Lisa Stratton, a legal expert in gender discrimination, testified that enshrining gender equality in Minnesota’s Constitution would make it clear to the courts that they need to apply the highest level of scrutiny to laws that create or reinforce gender disparities. It would also make clear that such laws must be justified by a compelling state interest and the law under review must be found to be necessary. This standard would place gender equality on the same footing as racial and religious equality. Adding an equal protection clause to the Constitution is another step forward in Minnesota’s long journey towards becoming a place that embraces the diversity and uniqueness of its people. As Jettie Ann Hill, a 26-year state employee and member of the MN Association of Professional Employees (MAPE) said, “Now is the time for Minnesota to begin closing the gap and recognizing the intersection between race and gender by adding the ERA to the state Constitution.” The amendment would have a positive benefit to Minnesota’s economy and help to reduce the pay gap between men and women. Hill continued, “It is well documented that Black, Latino, American Indian, and other women of color in Minnesota face complex economic inequalities, and more training and education does not lead to the same economic payoff as men.” Some of the most powerful testimony was given by MatasCastillo who spoke to her experience as a survivor of sexual assault in the military and to being recognized as the first woman to hold positions traditionally held by men. “I was proud to blaze a trail that others could follow, but if I am honest, I never asked to serve as an exemplar of my gender, but only to serve. They call that a privilege, but it would be a far greater privilege to live in a world where women did not need to prove the worth of their gender to earn the respect given as a matter of course to men.” Pheng Thao, the Statewide Coordinator for Men and Masculine Folks Network, spoke to the amendment’s ability to help change our culture for the better, highlighting the tragic fact that one in three women and girls in Minnesota experience gender violence in their lifetime. Thao went on to say, “We live in a culture where we are still teaching our boys and young men rigid ideas about manhood – dominant, strong-willed, emotionless – and that women and girls are there to serve their needs.”  Pheng Thao, the Statewide Coordinator for Men and Masculine Folks Network testifies before the Government Operations Committee “Minnesota has made a lot of progress towards becoming a place where everyone is welcome. Having the amendment on the ballot allows Minnesotans to take the next step together and say to the world that in Minnesota, everyone matters,” said Heather Allison, President of ERA Minnesota.
Other people testifying in favor of the legislation were Rubén Vázquez, Vice-President of Racial Justice and Public Policy for the YWCA and Debra Fitzpatrick, Co-director of the Center on Women, Gender and Public Policy at the Humphrey School of Public Affairs at the University of Minnesota. “I urge this committee, this Legislature, this Governor, this state, to stop talking about how unfair inequality based on sex or gender is and start taking some action. Not only for the sake of my children, but for the sake of our younger generation, I ask you to approve H.F. 13. Let’s truly make this a better One Minnesota!” said Vázquez. “Ongoing pay inequities between men and women in the state are hurting our state and its families. Increasingly Minnesota women are the primary breadwinner in their family and overtime their earnings have become an instrumental part of economic stability for most families. Yet, pay inequities persist in our state at every stage of a women’s career; short-changing them and in many cases children as well” said Fitzpatrick. The bill was referred to the Ways and Means committee and is expected to come to the full House floor for a vote later this session. “We expect the amendment to pass the House this year,” said Allison. “The real question is whether the Senate is going to give Minnesotans the opportunity to decide if everyone in our state should have the same rights.” “Some people make the mistake of thinking the amendment is a political issue related to reproductive rights,” said Murphy, referring to an amendment that was offered and then withdrawn. “It is not. In Minnesota the issue is settled law, the Minnesota Supreme Court issued a constitutional ruling in 1995 in Doe vs. Gomez that the state cannot discriminate against a legal service when offering subsidies to pregnancy-related services for low-income women.” The committee also voted unanimously on the second bill, a resolution memorializing Congress to remove the deadline on the federal ERA (HF71) which was then referred to the full House Chamber. Although Minnesota was the twenty-sixth state to ratify the federal ERA in 1973, the overall effort fell short of the 3/4 states necessary to add it to the constitution due to an arbitrary deadline imposed on it. Congress has the power to remove that deadline or to simply extend it. In the past two years two states, Nevada then Illinois, ratified the federal ERA, leaving just one more state needed to reach the necessary 38 states. Virginia is currently close of becoming the 38th and final state needed to ratify the federal ERA amendment with other states closely on its heels vying for that honor. Testifying in favor of the resolution were former Minnesota state legislator and founder of ERA Minnesota Betty Folliard and members of the public, Rosemary Rocco (former Vice President of ERA Minnesota) and Amy Caucutt of Rochester, Minnesota. ERA Minnesota is a coalition of thousands of activists and organizations from every corner of the state dedicated to embedding an Equal Rights Amendment into our state and national constitutions to ensure that all citizens are protected from discrimination on the basis of gender.
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PRESS Release: FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: January 24, 2019
Contact: Heather Allison (651) 214-1702 heather@eramn.org Betty Folliard (612) 868-3511 betty.folliard@gmail.com The ERA is in the House ST PAUL, MINN – ERA Minnesota (ERA MN www.eramn.org) is thrilled to announce that for the first time in decades the Minnesota House will hold hearings on Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) bills today -- January 24th, 2019 before the Government Operations Committee, SOB Room 10 at 9:45 AM. There are two ERA bills to be heard in the Government Operations Committee that day: first (HF13), a Minnesota State ERA amendment to the state constitution bill chief-authored by Representative Mary Kunesh-Podein; and second (HF71), is a Resolution to Congress to remove the deadline on the federal ERA chief-authored by Representative Rena Moran. Both bills have companion bills introduced today in the Senate: the MN State ERA SF200 (Cohen) and the ERA Resolution to Congress SF208 (Pappas). HF13/SF200 -- the constitutional amendment -- would provide for gender equality under the law and proposes a constitutional amendment that, if passed by both bodies of the Minnesota Legislature, would be added to the ballot in the 2020 general election for the voters to decide on the outcome. 2020 has special significance because it coincides with the 100th Anniversary of Women’s Suffrage – the year women achieved the right to vote. “This state ERA is long overdue,” says Heather Allison, President of ERAMN. “25 states already have passed ERA’s into their state constitutions – the oldest having been written over 140 years ago.” HF71/SF208 is a resolution memorializing Congress to remove the “June 30th 1982” deadline so that once the 38th state ratifies the ERA it can be ratified into the U.S. Constitution. “95% of Minnesotans believe everyone should have equal rights,” said Betty Folliard, Founder of ERAMN. “We’re grateful to the Legislature for this opportunity to make equal legal.” ERA Minnesota is a coalition of thousands of activists and organizations from every corner of the state dedicated to embedding an Equal Rights Amendment into our state and national constitutions to ensure that all citizens are protected from discrimination on the basis of sex. “Pay inequity, workplace gender discrimination, domestic violence, rape & campus sexual assault, female poverty, pregnancy discrimination, and laws that unjustly affect men will all be helped by an ERA;” says M. Kathleen Murphy, VP of ERAMN & Founder of CAFE Coalition; “that’s why the ERA is so badly needed.” ERA Minnesota is a coalition of thousands of activists and organizations from every corner of the state dedicated to embedding an Equal Rights Amendment into our state and national constitutions to ensure that all citizens are protected from discrimination on the basis of sex. by Betty Folliard
Lots of good news at the federal level: Virginia continues their march to ratify the federal ERA with action days at the capitol there. To date the VA Senate passed the ERA bill and currently it is on hold in the General Assembly there awaiting a hearing. Arizona, Missouri, North Carolina and Georgia all have pushes to become the 38th state in the nation to ratify the federal ERA as well. And our national coalitions - ERA Coalition, ERA Action, Equal Means Equal etc - are ramping up for the fight once the 38th state ratifies. We are united, we’re organized, and we’re ready to take ERA to fruition! Meanwhile, the great news is that Deleware just passed a state ERA which will be added to their constitution. Congrats, Delaware! You just became state #25 to addd the ERA to your state constitution! PRESS ADVISORY: FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
January 18, 2019 Contact: Heather Allison (651) 214-1702, Heather@eramn.org Betty Folliard (612) 868-3511, betty.folliard@gmail.com Brand New Day for the ERA ST PAUL, MINN – ERA Minnesota (ERAMN www.eramn.org) is thrilled to announce that for the first time in decades the Minnesota House will hold hearings on Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) bills next Thursday January 24th, 2019 in the State Office Building, basement-Room 10 at 9:45 a.m. There are two ERA bills to be heard in the Government Operations & Veterans Affairs Committee that day: first (HF13), a Minnesota State ERA amendment to the state constitution bill chief-authored by Representative Mary Kunesh-Podein; and second (HF71), is a Resolution to Congress to remove the deadline on the federal ERA chief-authored by Representative Rena Moran. Both bills have companion bills introduced today in the Senate: the MN State ERA SF200 (Cohen) and the ERA Resolution to Congress SF208 (Pappas). HF13/SF200 provides for gender equality under the law and proposes a constitutiona amendment that, if passed by both bodies of the Minnesota Legislature, would be added to the ballot in the 2020 general election for the voters to decide on the outcome. 2020 has special significance because it coincides with the 100th Anniversary of Women’s Suffrage – the year women achieved the right to vote. “This state ERA is long overdue, says Heather Allison, President of ERAMN. “25 states already have passed ERA’s into their state constitutions – the oldest having been written over 140 years ago.” HF71/SF208 is a resolution memorializing Congress to remove the “June 30th, 1982” deadline so that once the 38th state ratifies the ERA it can be ratified into the U.S. Constitution. “95% of Minnesotans believe everyone should have equal rights,” said Betty Folliard, Founder of ERAMN. “We’re grateful to the Legislature for this opportunity to make equal legal.” ERA Minnesota is a coalition of thousands of activists and organizations from every corner of the state dedicated to embedding an Equal Rights Amendment into our state and national constitutions to ensure that all citizens are protected from discrimination on the basis of sex. This organization is a sponsor of Women’s March Minnesota's (www.womensmarchmn.com) “Unstoppable” Rally & March this Saturday. The Equal Rights Amendment is part of Women’s March’s Unity Principles. “Pay inequity, gender discrimination in the workplace, gender violence including domestic violence and sexual assault, and, primarily, gender fairness in our court system are the main reasons why the state ERA is still necessary.” says M. Kathleen Murphy, VP of ERAMN & Founder of the MN CAFE Coalition. ##### ERA Bill Numbers: HF13/SF200; and HF71/SF208. For more information, go to www.eramn.org |
AuthorERA Minnesota (ERAMN) is a coalition of individuals and organizations working to secure an Equal Rights Amendment to the State and Federal Constitutions. Archives
February 2019
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