Equal Rights for All – Update
by Louise Reavis
As expected, the proposed New York State Constitutional ERA Amendment was put back on the November ballot after a unanimous ruling by a state appellate court.
The amendment had been removed from the ballot in May when a judge ruled that the state legislature had not followed the appropriate procedure in passing it. This ruling was overturned by the appellate court so now the League can move full steam ahead in our collaborative effort with New Yorkers for Equal Rights in educating the public about the amendment and ensuring that all voters understand the importance of passing it.
The New York ERA would significantly strengthen the protection of current laws aimed at giving women reproductive freedom as well as prohibit discrimination by government agencies that is related to gender, disability, age, ethnicity and sex or gender expression.
The Mid Hudson ERA task force is currently planning one or several in person get-togethers to write postcards to prospective voters in targeted counties who have been identified as being “persuadable” on this issue. Also, we will be networking with other groups to facilitate the passage of this important initiative and to get out the vote.
Are you interested in joining our LWVMHR ERA task force? If so, contact Cindy Lanzetta at packback56@yahoo.com or Louise Reavis at louise.reavis@gmail.com