Julia Henderson

5/03/15
Red
Feminism Essay
It is essential for women to be afforded the legal protection of a minority group in order
to receive the equal rights promised by the ERA which failed to be ratified into a law. Phyllis
Schlaflys opposition to the ERA wasnt well justified, while Susan Brownmillers support
certainly was. Even though this amendment was never passed, its important points could
translate into law if discrimination of women was recognized. While pornography isnt designed
to put women in their place, it does promote a bad image of women.
The Equal Rights Amendment, passed to states for ratification in 1972, would legally
guarantee Equality of rights under the lawon account of sex (Eagle Forum, A Short History
of E.R.A., 5/7). This would mean that there would be equal justice under law for all citizens
(The ERA: A Brief Introduction). The anti-ERA activists, in general, came up with numerous
problems to favor it not to be ratified. According to the Phyllis Schlafly Report, these reasons
included: that women would no longer be exempt from the military draft, it would take away
tradition benefitsfor wives, women and mothers, and fund abortion, allow same-sex marriage,
and eliminate veterans preference, etc. Schlafly personally opposed it because she didnt want
the government to be given more power and because she believed that a stable society couldnt
be maintained by allowing feminism and gay marriage. She believed that [Feminsts] have given
us divorce, millions of fatherless children and the idea that its O.K. to be a single mom
(time.com, Phyllis Schlafly at 84 Q&A). She also thought that feminism treated women as
victims rather than honoring their success. She didnt think that women should account their
failure with how society treats them. In opposition to her views, it must be addressed that women
are indeed discriminated against.

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5/03/15
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Susan Brownmiller would agree. She was a strong feminist which, one could infer,
viewed the attempt to ensure the ERAs ratification honorable. She would think it ridiculous
however, that it wasnt actually ratified in the end. In her book, she addressed the problem of
rape that women face, as well as the negative aspects of pornography. She also discusses how the
upbringing of girls promotes them to standby instead of self-defend, the opposite of what males
are often taught. Brownmiller wrote, [A] forceful authority that genuinely works for the
protection of womens rightscan become an efficient mechanism in the control of rape
(Against Our Will, Women Fight Back, 389). This would lead one to believe that Brownmiller
favored the attempt to protect women through the ERA.
Brownmiller described pornography as [An] exaggerated portrayal of the female body
as a passive sex object simply demeaning to womens dignity and self-conception (Against
Our Will, Women Fight Back, 389). Pornography promotes the false perception that men have
sexual access to the female body at all times, and fuel the rapist mentality. Pornography is
anti-female propaganda, as it is geared towards males and dehumanizes women into objects to
be used. Against Our Will also reports that when asked about pornography, Females more
often than males reported disgust and offense (Brownmiller, Women Fight Back, 395). That
being said, pornography should be considered a form of hate speech. Hate speech is speech that
offends, threatens, or insults groups, based on [a multitude of traits] (americanbar.org, Debating
the Mighty Constitutional Opposites). As already stated, people do get offended or insulted by
such pornographic depictions, therefore rendering it a form of hate speech against women.
These reasons in it of themselves are enough to support the legal protection of women as
a minority group, but there are more reasons. As in many other workplaces, Over 900 past and
present women brokers at Merrill Lynch assert that they have experienced gender-based

Julia Henderson
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discrimination (nwlc.org, Affirmative Action and What It Means for Women). The same source
reports that women are often made to endure sexually explicit verbal harassment in the
workplace as well as are, denied opportunities for training advancement offered to male
employees. Many statistics show that Men are more likely to be accepted into higher level jobs,
and are under represented in most blue collar trades. According to the National Womens Law
Center, in 2000, Women working full-time, full-year still earn, on average, only 73 cents for
every dollar earned by men.
Based on my opinion, and experience, as a girl, I would have to say that while we have
definitely made progress in gaining womens equality over the years, we havent yet completed
essential steps to fully securing it. At my age, I dont really feel the effects of sexism or gender
discrimination, but sadly, it is true that women are treated unfairly in the workplace, even today.
Rape and sexual harassment are also big issues that have only recently become spoken of. I think
that we still have a long way to go in securing equality in contemporary America; but that if
women should be afforded the legal protection of a minority group, we will be making big steps
toward gaining the deserved rights that were proposed long ago in the ERA.

Julia Henderson
5/03/15
Red
Works Cited
"Affirmative Action and What It Means for Women." National Women's Law Center. N.p., 1 July
2000. Web. 3 May 2015. <http://www.nwlc.org/resource/affirmative-action-and-what-itmeans-women>.
Brownmiller, Susan. Women Fight Back. N.p.: n.p., n.d. Print.
"The ERA: A Brief Introduction." ERA: Overview. N.p., n.d. Web. 3 May 2015.
<http://www.equalrightsamendment.org/overview.htm>.
Sachs, Andrea. "Q&A: Phyllis Schlafly at 84." Time. N.p., 7 Apr. 2009. Web. 3 May 2015.
<http://content.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1889757,00.html>.
"A Short History of E.R.A." Eagle Forum. N.p., n.d. Web. 3 May 2015.
<http://www.eagleforum.org/psr/1986/sept86/psrsep86.html>.
"Students in Action: Debating the 'Mighty Constitutional Opposites.'" ABA Division for Public
Education. N.p., n.d. Web. 3 May 2015.
<http://www.americanbar.org/groups/public_education/initiatives_awards/students_in_act
ion/debate_hate.html>.