Most UT students probably assume that men and women are still considered legally equal in the state of Florida.
As a matter of fact, they’re sorely mistaken. Florida is one of 15 states which has not ratified the Equal Rights Amendment, or E.R.A. Several students from the UT Women’s Organization have set out to do their part to change that.
“The E.R.A. group’s mission was to inform the UT community about the history and present status of the E.R.A. and get those interested in being a voice and a part of getting it ratified to sign the petition,” said group member D’Asante’ Beneby.
“We still would like people to join the Facebook group, and we are planning to contact the Tampa’s National Women’s Organization to assist in … making a difference to get the Amendment ratified, especially in the state of Florida.”
The E.R.A. has three sections. Section one states that equality of rights will not be denied on account of sex. Section Two states that Congress has the power to enforce the article’s provisions, and section three says the amendment will take place two years after ratification.
Anyone who wants to sign the petition can contact Beneby at dbeneby@ut.edu or e-mail Professor Judy Hayden at jhayden@ut.edu.
This is wonderful news. I received two degrees from Florida and, while I no longer live there, I would be so proud of my old home if it was one of the states on the correct side of history and said yes to women citizens finally being granted in our nation’s highest legal document the full citizenship rights that should be allowed each citizen and no longer have a lower legal status solely due to our sex. I thank this UT organization for working to ensure the state legislature finally says yes to equal rights by affirming the Equal Rights Amendment.