America, it should totally be in the Constitution. Y’all were talking about this in the ’70s and you still haven’t made it happen? Come on, yo. I know it’s old news, but it still really really really should be a constitutional amendment.
You should fix the wording though. It’s totally a product of liberal squishiness. As proposed:
Section 1. Equality of rights under the law shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex. Section 2. The Congress shall have the power to enforce, by appropriate legislation, the provisions of this article. Section 3. This amendment shall take effect two years after the date of ratification.
“Equality of rights” is such a nebulous concept. Make this simple.
Section 1. The rights of citizens of the United States under the law shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex.
Yes, I just took the equality out of the Equal Rights Amendment, but it was with good cause: clarity! Of course, the ERA should be covered by the 14th Amendment anyways, but apparently the courts disagree. Tune in next week for more Copyediting the Constitution, when I rewrite the Second Amendment! (Spoiler: I propose it be changed to “Amendment II: Gunplay ft. Gunplay.”)
Follow the brilliant career of Jonathan Bradley, noted iconoclast, libertine, and man of letters. When he's not blogging here, he blogs at The United States Studies Centre at the University of Sydney, Australia. Jonathan is the editor of American Review magazine's daily Blog Book section and a daily editor at the Singles Jukebox.
