I'm here to talk to you about the United States government, your rights, and the political climate today.
Our country was founded on two documents, the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution. Attached to the Constitution are the "Bill of Rights" which, as stated in the Constitution, apply to all men. Only to white men, though.
The Equal Rights Amendment applies to women. It is the last piece of critical Civil Rights legislation that is currently under attack. The Supreme Court is currently re-thinking the voting rights act of 1965, which gave people of color guarantees of their voting rights.
If the Supreme Court can gut the Voting Rights Act, the Equal Rights Amendment becomes even more important today.
Right now, women are not protected under the Constitution except as outlined in the 20th Amendment, giving women the right to vote.
Therefore, women are not protected under the first ten amendments under the Bill of Rights. Some of the freedoms not guaranteed to women include:
Women don't have freedom of speech. I could go to prison for writing this piece.
Women don't have the right for peaceable assembly. Your grandmother and her two friends walking down the street to the coffee house or to church could be arrested.
Women are not allowed to petition the government for redress of grievances. If the IRS makes a mistake and takes everything she owns, a woman cannot protest.
A woman does not have the right to bear arms. All the NRA groups in the country notwithstanding.
A woman must house soldiers not related to her in her home without her consent.
A woman is not secure in her house, papers or effects. They can be searched at any time and seized for any reason without warrant by a court of law. The law does not have to have probable cause.
A woman is not protected against double jeopardy or jeopardy of life and limb, may be compelled to be a witness against herself and can be deprived of her liberty and property without cause or just compensation, and without due process of law. This is what happens in rape trials when a woman's past is given as reason for her rape.
A woman can be held without trial, without bail, and without being charged, for interminable lengths of time if suspected in a capital crime.
A woman does not have the right to a lawyer, a speedy trial or a trial by a jury of her peers. She does not have the right to be confronted by witnesses against her, and does not have the right to compel witnesses in her favor in a criminal trial.
A woman does not have protection against cruel or unusual punishment, and may have to pay excessive bail, just because she is a woman.
Women are not equal in this country. Women are suffered equal status at the generosity of men. Women are only allowed these things because men say so. It's time to make it a requirement by law.
Pass the Equal Rights Amendment today!
Our country was founded on two documents, the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution. Attached to the Constitution are the "Bill of Rights" which, as stated in the Constitution, apply to all men. Only to white men, though.
The Equal Rights Amendment applies to women. It is the last piece of critical Civil Rights legislation that is currently under attack. The Supreme Court is currently re-thinking the voting rights act of 1965, which gave people of color guarantees of their voting rights.
If the Supreme Court can gut the Voting Rights Act, the Equal Rights Amendment becomes even more important today.
Right now, women are not protected under the Constitution except as outlined in the 20th Amendment, giving women the right to vote.
Therefore, women are not protected under the first ten amendments under the Bill of Rights. Some of the freedoms not guaranteed to women include:
Women don't have freedom of speech. I could go to prison for writing this piece.
Women don't have the right for peaceable assembly. Your grandmother and her two friends walking down the street to the coffee house or to church could be arrested.
Women are not allowed to petition the government for redress of grievances. If the IRS makes a mistake and takes everything she owns, a woman cannot protest.
A woman does not have the right to bear arms. All the NRA groups in the country notwithstanding.
A woman must house soldiers not related to her in her home without her consent.
A woman is not secure in her house, papers or effects. They can be searched at any time and seized for any reason without warrant by a court of law. The law does not have to have probable cause.
A woman is not protected against double jeopardy or jeopardy of life and limb, may be compelled to be a witness against herself and can be deprived of her liberty and property without cause or just compensation, and without due process of law. This is what happens in rape trials when a woman's past is given as reason for her rape.
A woman can be held without trial, without bail, and without being charged, for interminable lengths of time if suspected in a capital crime.
A woman does not have the right to a lawyer, a speedy trial or a trial by a jury of her peers. She does not have the right to be confronted by witnesses against her, and does not have the right to compel witnesses in her favor in a criminal trial.
A woman does not have protection against cruel or unusual punishment, and may have to pay excessive bail, just because she is a woman.
Women are not equal in this country. Women are suffered equal status at the generosity of men. Women are only allowed these things because men say so. It's time to make it a requirement by law.
Pass the Equal Rights Amendment today!
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