Thirty-nine years past the deadline to ratify, voted down thirteen times by former Illinois lawmakers, and with five states having rescinded their passage of the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA), but the ERA will not die because proponents will not give up.

Here’s what the ERA actually says:

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 ERA says nothing about women and has nothing to do with equal rights for women. If it did, it would be an unnecessary duplication of the Fourteenth Amendment which guarantees equal protection under the law. It does, however, have everything to do with abortion, specifically the elimination of all abortion restrictions.

After Connecticut passed a state ERA, the Connecticut State Supreme Court stated, “Since only women become pregnant, discrimination against pregnancy by not funding abortions… is sex-oriented discrimination…. The Court concludes that the regulation that restricts the funding of abortions… violates Connecticut’s Equal Rights Amendment” (Doe v. Maher).

After New Mexico passed a state ERA, the New Mexico State Supreme Court ordered the state to pay for Medicaid abortions, saying the state could not differentiate between abortions and medical procedures sought by men (New Mexico Right to Choose, NARAL, et al v. Johnson).

For evidence that the ERA is centrally about unrestricted abortion access, look to Wisconsin and Minnesota where ERA proponents themselves killed state ERA’s because they included abortion-neutral clauses.

The elimination of legal recognition of sex differences will be used as a basis to justify unrestricted abortion, but it will also be used by the “trans” community. As IFI’s Laurie Higgins wrote, “What the ERA will do is prohibit the public recognition of sexual differentiation, and we all know who really wants to pretend that biological sex has no meaning.”

Last year ERA proponents focused on passing legislation that requires taxpayer-funding of abortions (HB 40) and were successful. This year their focus is on passing the ERA.

Take ACTION:  Click HERE to email your state lawmakers to urge them to oppose the ERA, SJRCA 4.

Please educate your friends and family members on the ERA. Ask them to educate others. Make an appointment to meet with your state rep and senator. We will gladly provide the talking points. To find your state lawmakers, click on Officials Finder at www.illinoisfamily.org or call the IFI office 708-781-9328.

RESCHEDULED: IFI Worldview Conference May 5th

We have rescheduled our annual Worldview Conference featuring well-know apologist John Stonestreet for Saturday, May 5th at Medinah Baptist Church. Mr. Stonestreet is s a dynamic speaker and the award-winning author of “Making Sense of Your World” and his newest offer: “A Practical Guide to Culture.”

Join us for a wonderful opportunity to take enhance your biblical worldview and equip you to more effectively engage the culture.

Click HERE to learn more or to register!