Preview

Equal Rights Between Men and Women in the United States

Powerful Essays
Open Document
Open Document
2516 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Equal Rights Between Men and Women in the United States
Final Draft
Equal Rights Between Men and Women in the United States
Michael Loiseau
Prairie View High School

Abstract
Many Americans are not aware that men and women are not guaranteed equality of the rights under the Constitution. However, with the way American society functions today, a guaranteed equality of rights under the Constitution may not be necessary. The question then comes up of whether or not an Equal Rights Amendment is really something that we need ratified in our
Constitution. Support of the Equal Rights Amendment can be seen as a waste of time and as something that is just being made to keep people busy because many people believe that men and women already live equally. However, it can also be seen as action that must be taken to protect the advancements that women have made over the years as they have attained more liberty in society. The following questions are samples of questions that can be asked regarding the topic at hand. Do men and women have equal rights in the United States according to the Constitution?
How can equal rights between men and women be achieved and guaranteed in today’s society?
What effects would an Equal Rights Amendment have on society? Who would benefit from an
Equal Rights Amendment? How does the United States compare to other countries when it comes to the issue of equal rights?
Keywords: equal, rights, Constitution, effects, guaranteed

It has been over two­hundred years since the founding of the United States of America and the signing of the U.S Constitution, and to this day men and women have still not been guaranteed undeniable, equal rights under the law. After all these years and the advancements that the United States has made, equal rights between men and women would be expected in the modern day and age. Due to the fact that equal rights are still not protected under the law, men and women have been pushing for the Equal Rights Amendment, or ERA,



References: from  http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/08/10/equal­rights­amendment_n_5666080.html   Dan Buckley (Oct. 8, 2014), ​ “The Constitution of the United States,” (July 9, 1868), Amendment 14.  “The Constitution of the United States,” (August 18, 1920), Amendment 19.  ushistory.org, (2014), ​ The Equal Rights Amendment,​ Vivien Labaton, (Jul. 25, 2014), ​ Five Myths About the Gender Pay Gap, ​

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    and to be more specific the Bill of Rights, which would be going against it is overall…

    • 1025 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Hence, they wanted more in an interview with one of our very own suffrage movement leaders, Alice Paul, and writer Amelia R. Fry. In this interview, Amelia asked Paul “I remember that one of the arguments against the Equal Rights Amendment is that it only pertains to equality of treatment in the federal government or in state government jobs and positions and things like that. How limited is its effect, if it gets ratified?”. To which Paul replied “All legal matters; anything that's under the law.-It cannot be denied by the federal government or the state government on the grounds of sex. That is, you can have all the inequalities in a private business you wanted…

    • 1340 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    A poignant question that has been raised throughout American society since the constitution was written is should it be the responsibility of the law to change society or to protect the original intent of the country’s forefathers? The challenge with the original document is it left out everyone that was not a white male, meaning women and people of color. With regards to civil rights and liberties, the law should accommodate the needs of a society rather than dominate a select group or groups of people due to an existing standard of racial oppression. One of the difficulties regarding the Plessy vs. Ferguson case was the fact that southern whites were still not willing to view African Americans as equals because it threatened their belief…

    • 934 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The Nineteenth Amendment gives all women the right to vote in the United States and all of society. Amendments III and XIII give equality in the United States because the Third Amendment makes sure that a soldier cannot take over a person’s house without their permission. The Thirteenth Amendment stops a lighter man from making a darker man a slave. Amendments II and XV are some Amendments that people would think do not give equality, but they are wrong because the Second Amendment makes sure if you are over the age of 18 you can have a weapon to protect yourself unless you are a felon. The Fifteenth Amendment allows all men to vote no matter what skin tone, race, or religion in all society. With all that being said, the Constitution does give for equality in the United States and the…

    • 967 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Women today have the same rights as man do and without the rights for women, our world would be destructive.…

    • 255 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Women all over America were denied their rights. They felt that it was unfair how men had all of the rights and they don’t. This is shown in Document 1. Two of the rights that they were denied are, the right to the product of her work and the…

    • 412 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Some would say that all men, including women, all have the same rights and that America is fair and just. These same people would use the Constitution as…

    • 778 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    In the United States, true equality has never existed. From the Declaration of Independence to modern times, the U.S. legal system has failed in any attempt at equality. The ideology of "all [men] are equal but some [men] are more equal than others" has been present throughout the history of the U.S. (Orwell). Inequality has always existed in the United States legal system and continues to exist today; however, the inequality presently in the system is not as blatant as what it once was, but the system has come to depend on inequality.<br><br>Since the very beginning of a legal system in the United States, there has been inequality. The Declaration of Independence declared that "…all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights…"(Jefferson). The reality of the Declaration of Independence was that all free, white, landowning men are created equal. Slavery continued in the U.S. for nearly ninety years after the Declaration, and black Americans still feel the sting of inequality. Women were also left out of "…all men are created equal…." The implied meaning of the opening lines of the Declaration of Independence is what the U.S. legal system has strived for and failed to grasp fully.<br><br>After the establishment of independence in the United States, the development of the Constitution and the Bill of Rights ensued. The Bill of Rights was to establish the basic rights of every citizen of the United States, but failed to do so. The rights of white, male citizens were the only rights that were ensured by the Bill of Rights. The rights of blacks and the underprivileged were not even considered. The Fifth Amendment states, "No person shall be held to answer for a capital, or otherwise infamous crime, unless on a presentment or indictment of a grand jury…, nor be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor shall private property be taken for public use, without just compensation" ("Constitution",…

    • 2173 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Women are equal to men that is one of the basics of human rights. What does this mean? Was there a time when men and women were not equal and what is it to be a woman. Women are viewed as girls, mothers, wives, grandmothers, relatives and…

    • 513 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    In my own opinion, the Equal Rights Amendment was founded and supported by influential suffragists whose efforts should not die in vain. I believe that we, as a nation, should ratify this amendment. The oppositions are founded upon old ideologies that no longer fit into today's society. These oppositions are outdated and, many of which, have already occurred without even passing the amendment (not that I believe that is a bad thing at all). These oppositions are the result of outdated mindsets, fear mongering, and ignorance from lack of willingness to educate onself. In this day and age, I am honestly appalled that our nation does not have an Equal Rights Amendment. If we are to be the home of the free and the brave, we ought to educate one…

    • 157 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    People have claimed that ERA is not good for Americans and the Constitution because it is confusing. “Others felt that the Equal Rights Amendment was not a good change to the constitution because it was confusing and could lay the framework for changing the way that laws were made.” In section two of the Equal Rights Amendment only specifies that congress has the power to enforce the provisions outlined in the amendment, which would be giving the Federal Government more power. This was one of the reasons this amendment didn’t get ratified. Another thing people weren’t a fan of was the language that was used in the amendment. “The language used on the Equal Rights Amendment is considered tricky that may lead to the lack of gender equality and confusion.” People feel like this amendment wasn’t clearly written, which leaves room for misinterpretation. It has also been argued that this amendment could also take rights away from…

    • 816 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Double Penalty Cases

    • 1934 Words
    • 8 Pages

    Many groups in American history have traveled various paths to challenge the one dimensional thinking that has been etched in our cultural thought process due to the Constitutional language this country was built on. While these pathways have their individual twists and turns, they all have intersected for the common cause of equality. Hispanic, African American, Homosexual, and Disabled Americans are just a few of the groups that have each raised a cohesive voice to synergize the cause. One group that sometimes gets overlooked but still continues to carry the torch is Women. Apart from the Equal Rights Amendment and the Suffrage movement, the path of gender equality…

    • 1934 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Better Essays

    other rights that were due them. The women’s movement brought about a new awareness of…

    • 1793 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Better Essays

    Since 1923, activists have been trying to pass the Equal Rights Amendment or ERA, which originally stated, "Equality of rights under the law shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex. " The amendment was ignored during the twenty’s, thirties, and forties until it was reintroduced in 1951. The ERA was then dropped until 1970 when feminists across america fought to reestablish and expand it to not only cover gender equality but racial equity and age discrimination as well. Although the Equal Rights Amendment was passed in 1972 by both the House and senate the amendment has yet to be put into the constitution because only 35 states have ratified it since then. The same 15 states that refused to ratify…

    • 1648 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Race in America

    • 529 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Answer the following questions in 100 to 250 words each. Provide citations for all the sources you use.…

    • 529 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays