Educational Resource
Equal Rights Amendment Factsheet (2020)
Equal Rights Amendment Factsheet, January 31, 2020
The resource from the Secretariat of Pro-Life Activities explains the Catholic Church’s strong support for the equal dignity of women and men, while outlining serious concerns raised by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops about the proposed Equal Rights Amendment.
- Catholic teaching on equality: The Church affirms the full and equal dignity of women and men and has long supported equal pay and fair treatment. These concerns motivate engagement with, not opposition to, women’s rights.
- Legal status of the ERA: Although Congress approved the ERA in 1972, it failed to be ratified by the required 38 states within the established deadline. Later attempts to extend or revive ratification are legally disputed. In January 2020, the Department of Justice concluded that the ERA could not be certified because the ratification deadline had passed.
- Congressional efforts: Two strategies are underway: (1) proposing a new ERA and restarting the ratification process (requiring a two‑thirds vote in Congress), or (2) retroactively removing the ratification deadline by simple majority, a move expected to face legal challenges and unresolved issues about states that rescinded ratification.
- ERA language and scope: The amendment’s brief text bans discrimination “on account of sex.” Supporters argue it would strengthen protections against discrimination, while critics claim existing laws already do so and warn the ERA could have far‑reaching unintended effects.
- Abortion concerns: The factsheet emphasizes that ERA advocates increasingly argue the amendment would constitutionally protect abortion and invalidate pro‑life laws, including limits on funding, parental notification, and informed consent. State-level ERAs have already been used in court to strike down abortion restrictions.
- Gender identity implications: Given recent legal trends redefining “sex” to include sexual orientation and gender identity, the ERA could constitutionalize these interpretations. This could affect bathrooms, locker rooms, shelters, healthcare, schools, athletics, prisons, and compel speech related to “preferred pronouns.”
- Religious liberty and conscience: The ERA could weaken protections for religious institutions and faith-based service providers, making it harder for them to operate according to their beliefs or receive government funding if their practices are deemed discriminatory.
The factsheet concludes that while equality between women and men is essential and already supported by Catholic teaching and law, the ERA poses significant legal, moral, and religious liberty risks—especially regarding abortion, gender ideology, and conscience protections.