Letter from Liz Carpenter in Support of the Equal Rights Amendment
9/23/1971
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Liz Carpenter, Lady Bird Johnson's White House press secretary, sent this letter to Congressman Don Edwards in support of the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA). Edwards wrote a document called "Liz Carpenter Seeks Passage of Equal Rights Amendment Without the Wiggins Amendment" requesting to insert the letter into the Congressional Record.
Introduced in Congress more times than any other proposed amendment, the ERA would have provided for legal gender equality if it had been ratified by the states. Opponents of the ERA argued that it would nullify laws that “protected” women from working long hours or physically challenging jobs. But supporters wanted equal treatment and equal pay regardless.
This document was identified by teachers in our Primarily Teaching 2017 summer workshop in Washington, D.C.
Introduced in Congress more times than any other proposed amendment, the ERA would have provided for legal gender equality if it had been ratified by the states. Opponents of the ERA argued that it would nullify laws that “protected” women from working long hours or physically challenging jobs. But supporters wanted equal treatment and equal pay regardless.
This document was identified by teachers in our Primarily Teaching 2017 summer workshop in Washington, D.C.
This primary source comes from the Records of the U.S. House of Representatives.
National Archives Identifier: 24824217
Full Citation: Letter from Liz Carpenter in Support of the Equal Rights Amendment; 9/23/1971; Legislative Bill Files of the Committee on the Judiciary for the 92nd Congress; Committee Papers, 1813 - 2011; Records of the U.S. House of Representatives, Record Group 233; National Archives Building, Washington, DC. [Online Version, https://www.docsteach.org/documents/document/carpenter-era, April 18, 2024]Activities that use this document
- Equal Rights Amendment Arguments
Created by the National Archives Education Team
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