U.S. Soccer and the NWSL have joined close to 100 major companies in voicing support for the addition of the 28th amendment — the Equal Rights Amendment — to the U.S. Constitution now that it’s been ratified by the required 75 percent of states.
The 93 companies filed an amicus brief in the case Virginia v. Ferriero, which was filed by the states of Virginia, Illinois and Nevada against U.S. archivist David Ferriero. In January, Virginia followed Illinois and Nevada to became the most recent state to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment, which was first introduced to Congress in 1923. Ferriero has not done his job to do the technical work of adding the amendment to the Constitution under instruction from the Trump administration’s Justice Department.
U.S. Soccer has joined a group of almost 100 organizations across the U.S. in urging the final adoption of the Equal Rights Amendment as the 28th Amendment to the Constitution. More information at the link below.
— U.S. Soccer (@ussoccer) July 1, 2020
Other companies who signed onto the amicus included Apple, Google, Twitter, Airbnb, Uber, WeWork, Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, Hershey and Pepsi. The companies stated in the amicus that the ERA — which seeks to end legal discrimination between men and women — would be good for business. Women make 81 cents to every dollar a man makes in the U.S., with the pay gap worse for women of color.
“(We) seek the full participation of women in the economy,” the brief read. “Operating in a wide range of industries and markets and serving a diverse and multicultural customer base, (we) understand that diversity in the workplace drives business performance. A workforce that includes employees with different backgrounds and life experiences is essential for any business operating in a global economy and multicultural society.”
Of course, anyone with a passing interest in women’s rights knows U.S. Soccer has been under fire for years for discrimination against women. The 1999 Women’s World Cup-winning squad boycotted a follow-up tournament over pay disputes. The Federation is currently being sued by players on the women’s national team for gender discrimination.
The USWNT Players Association was quick to point out the hypocrisy on Twitter.
and also
— USWNT Players (@USWNTPlayers) July 1, 2020
The lawsuit in question seeks to answer whether the original 1982 deadline for ratifying the amendment is Constitutional. Common sense would say just adopt the damn amendment and give women equal protection under law, but common sense rarely prevails in American politics.
For more on the amicus brief, read here. And while we’re on it, the Constitution is in clear need of a 29th amendment to guarantee voting rights after the Supreme Court essentially killed the Voting Rights Act in 2013. Recent events across the country and especially during the COVID-19 crisis have shown how severe voter suppression is in this country that still has yet to attain true democracy.
