At last, a chance

The blue wave that flipped the Virginia Legislature last week was a victory for Democrats in the commonwealth, who will now be in control for the first time in more than 20 years.

But this milestone could affect more than just Virginia. It’s a potentially historic turning point for women and equal rights. Because now that Democrats are in charge of both houses of the Virginia General Assembly, the Equal Rights Amendment might finally be approved there, which would mean it has been approved by three-fourths of the states—the threshold set for changing the U.S. Constitution.

The decades-long effort to amend the Constitution to explicitly outlaw sex discrimination seemed hopelessly stalled until 2017, when the Nevada Legislature unexpectedly voted to ratify, 45 years after Congress sent the amendment to the states for approval. Then, in 2018, the Illinois Legislature did the same, and suddenly it seemed that the ERA might actually reach the constitutional threshold. But efforts to get a 38th state to approve the amendment this year failed. A ratification bill in Virginia’s House of Delegates by Democrat Jennifer Carroll Foy was squashed by her Republican colleagues, who wouldn’t even let the proposal get out of a subcommittee.

Crazy as it seems, Republicans continue to oppose an amendment guaranteeing equal rights for women even in the 21st century. Even if passing the ERA were only a symbolic act, what’s the harm in enshrining it in the country’s most enduring statement of values?

Virginia’s Democratic lawmakers should make ratification a priority as soon as the Legislature convenes in 2020. Even so, that won’t be the end of the fight. The final brawl will take place in Congress and possibly the Supreme Court over whether the deadline Congress set for ratifying the ERA can be changed retroactively and whether states can rescind their earlier votes to ratify.