December 22, 2024

Amidst Push by Bush, Pressley, Momentum Grows for Biden to Publish Equal Rights Amendment

As the President prepares to leave office in 29 days, prominent leaders & organizations are joining federal lawmakers in calling for ERA publication 

Washington, D.C. (December 22, 2024) —Congresswomen Cori Bush (MO-01) released the following statement on the growing momentum for the publication of the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA), one week after she led a congressional letter to President Biden, alongside Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley (MA-07) and 120 colleagues, to urge the President to publish the Equal Rights Amendment.

“The fight for the Equal Rights Amendment is 101 years old—and we have never been as close as we are today to getting it done. Our push this week for the President to publish the ERA is gaining strong momentum, bringing more and more people to the table, and President Biden is hearing our calls loud and clear in the White House,” said Congresswoman Bush. “We are proud to stand alongside a broad coalition of labor leaders, the American Bar Association, and organizations championing LGBTQ+ equality, reproductive freedom, women’s rights, civil rights, and more in urging President Biden to take this crucial step forward. President Biden, you have the historic opportunity to enshrine gender equality in the U.S. Constitution. By getting the ERA across the finish line, you can solidify constitutionally protected equal rights as a cornerstone of your legacy. Our growing movement urges you to seize this moment and join us in the fight for equality.”

 On December 15, Congresswoman Bush and Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley led 120 of their colleagues in a letter to President Biden urging him to direct the Archivist to certify and publish the Equal Rights Amendment as the 28th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution before the end of his presidency. This letter was met with resounding support from various coalitions that have since sent similar letters to the Administration.

Over 140 organizations sent a letter urging President Biden to publish  the Equal Rights Amendment, including: 

  • League of Women Voters of the United States 
  • Shattering Glass 
  • National Organization for Women (NOW)
  • Center for American Progress
  • American Association of University Women (AAUW)
  • National Organization for Women (NOW)
  • Guttmacher Institute
  • MoveOn
  • National LGBTQ Task Force Action Fund
  • National Women’s Political Caucus
  • End Rape On Campus
  • ERA Coalition
  • Indivisible
  • Abortion Action Missouri 
  • And more 


On Thursday, 22 women leaders of the labor movement sent a similar letter that contained 500 additional signatories from union workers. The leaders included:

  • Randi Weingarten, President, American Federation of Teachers
  • April Verrett, President, SEIU
  • Liz Shuler, President, AFL-CIO
  • Becky Pringle, President, NEA
  • Ai-jen Poo, President, National Domestic Workers Alliance
  • Sara Nelson, President, Association of Flight Attendants-CWA
  • Gwen Mills, President, Unite Here
  • Fran Drescher, President, SAG-AFTRA
  • Jennifer Dorning, President, Department for Professional Employees, AFL-CIO (DPE)
  • Gabrielle Carteris, President, International Federation of Actors
  • Amy Chin-Lai, President, Nonprofit Professional Employees Union, IFPTE 70
  • Elise Bryant, President, Coalition of Labor Union Women
  • Linda Powell, Executive Vice President, SAG-AFTRA
  • Evelyn DeJesus, Executive Vice President, AFT - American Federation of Teachers
  • Princess Moss, Vice President, National Education Association
  • Alexis Rean-Walker, Secretary-Treasurer, HPAE-Health Professionals and Allied Employees
  • Elissa McBride, Secretary-Treasurer, AFSCME
  • Sandra Karas, Secretary-Treasurer, Actors' Equity Association
  • Gay Henson, Secretary Treasurer, IFPTE
  • Joely Fisher, Secretary-Treasurer, SAG-AFTRA
  • Meghann Burke, Executive Director, NWSL Players Association
  • Kim Anderson, Executive Director, National Education Association

The efforts to certify and publish the Equal Rights Amendment has been affirmed by the American Bar Association (ABA) which adopted a resolution recognizing the Equal Rights Amendment as the 28th Amendment to the US Constitution and urged its implementation. This was echoed by a prominent coalition of reproductive rights organizations including the American Medical Women's Association (AMWA), Doctors For America, Planned Parenthood Keystone, MomsRising, National Council of Jewish Women (NCJW).

This growing push for the Equal Rights Amendment started in the halls of Congress, with over 12o members of Congress signing the letter Congresswoman Bush and Congresswoman Pressley led, including Representatives Alma Adams (NC-12), Gabe Amo (RI-01), Jake Auchincloss (MA-04), Becca Balint (VT-At Large), Nanette Barragan (CA-44), Donald Beyer (VA-08), Jamaal Bowman (NY-16), Shontel Brown (OH-11), Julia Brownley (CA-26), Salud Carbajal (CA-24), André Carson (IN-07), Troy Carter (LA-02), Erica Lee Carter (TX-18), Greg Casar (TX-35), Ed Case (HI-01), Sean Casten (IL-06), Kathy Castor (FL-14), Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick (FL-20), Judy Chu (CA-28), Yvette Clarke (NC-13), Gerald Connolly (VA-11), Jim Costa (CA-21), Mark DeSaulnier (CA-10), Suzan DelBene (WA-1), Madeleine Dean (PA-04), Diana DeGette (CO-01), Debbie Dingell (MI-06), Dwight Evans (PA-03), Adriano Espaillat (NY-13), Veronica Escobar (TX-16), Anna Eshoo (CA-16), Maxwell Frost (FL-10), Valerie Foushee (NC-04), John Garamendi (CA-08), Jesús Garcia (IL-04), Sylvia Garcia (TX-29), Mary Gay Scanlon (PA-05), Al Green (TX-09), Raul Grijalva (AZ-07), Daniel Goldman (NY-10), Josh Gottheimer (NJ-05), Jahana Hayes (CT-05), Eleanor Holmes Norton (DC), Val Hoyle (OR-04), Glenn Ivey (MD-04), Jeff Jackson (NC-14), Jonathan Jackson (IL-01), Sara Jacobs (CA-51), Pramila Jayapal (WA-07), Hank Johnson (GA-04), Sydney Kamlager-Dove (CA-37), Marcy Kaptur (OH-09), William "Bill" Keating (MA-09), Robin Kelly (IL-02), Ro Khanna (CA-17), Daniel Kildee (MI-08), Ann Kuster (NH-02),  Barbara Lee (CA-12), Summer Lee (PA-12), Susie Lee (NV-03), Teresa Leger Fernandez (NM-03), Ted Lieu (CA-36), Kathy Manning (NC-06), Lucy McBath (GA-07), Jennifer McClellan (VA-04), Betty McCollum (MN-04), James McGovern (MA-02), LaMonica McIver (NJ-10), Gregory Meeks (NY-05), Robert Menendez (NJ-08), Grace Meng (NY-06), Gwen Moore (WI-04), Seth Moulton (MA-06), Kevin Mullin (CA-15), Jerrold Nadler (NY-12), Grace Napolitano (CA-31), Wiley Nickel (NC-01), Donald Norcross (NJ-01), Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (NY-14), Ilhan Omar (MN-05), Frank Pallone (NJ-06), Jimmy Panetta (CA-19), Chris Pappas (NH-01), Chellie Pingree (ME-01), Mark Pocan (WI-02), Katie Porter (CA-47), Mike Quigley (IL-05), Delia Ramirez (IL-03), Jamie Raskin (MD-08), Deborah Ross (NC-02), C.A. Dutch Ruppersberger (MD-02), Andrea Salinas (OR-06), Linda Sánchez (CA-38), Jan Schakowsky (IL-09), Adam Schiff (CA-30), Hillary Scholten (MI-03), David Scott (GA-13), Robert Scott (VA-03), Terri Sewell (AL-07), Mikie Sherrill (NJ-11), Elissa Slotkin (MI-07), Eric Sorensen (IL-17), Darren Soto (FL-09), Abigail Spanberger (VA-07), Haley Stevens (MI-11), Eric Swalwell (CA-14), Shri Thanedar (MI-13), Bennie Thompson (MS-02), Dina Titus (NV-01), Rashida Tlaib (MI-12), Jill Tokuda (HI-02), Paul Tonko (NY-20), Lori Trahan (MA-03), Lauren Underwood (IL-14), Nydia Velazquez (NY-07), Debbie Wasserman Schultz (FL-25), Bonnie Watson Coleman (NJ-12), Jennifer Wexton (VA-10), Nikema Williams (GA-05), and Frederica Wilson (FL-24).

“The undersigned organizations implore you to move beyond politics to take swift action on this urgent issue before our democracy is further eroded and more lives are lost. We deeply appreciate the leadership and consistent commitment you have shown for sex and gender equality throughout your lifetime of public service. As we carry that mantle at a pivotal time in our history, we fervently implore you to seize this historic opportunity and enshrine sex equality into our Constitution. This can be your legacy. The health, rights, and future of our democracy depend on it,” said the coalition of organizations. 

“We have marched, Mr. President. Through picket lines, protests, and negotiations, we have carried the cause of justice forward. Now, we look to you to march with us. You have the power to take this historic step, not just for us, but for our daughters and sons, for every American who believes in equality under the law. Mr. President, your legacy will be defined by what you choose to protect and advance. By publishing the ERA, you can ensure that gender equality is no longer a contested battleground but a constitutional guarantee,” said the group of women labor union leaders.

In March 2023, Congresswoman Bush, alongside Congresswoman Pressley, launched the first-ever Congressional Caucus for the Equal Rights Amendment. This caucus was launched exactly 100 years after the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) was first introduced in Congress in 1923 to commemorate the centennial of the struggle for constitutional gender equality. 

In July 2023, Congresswoman Cori Bush and Senator Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) introduced the ERA Now Resolution, urging the Archivist of the United States, Colleen Shogan, to certify the state ratifications of the ERA and publish the Equal Rights Amendment in the federal register, cementing it as a formal part of the U.S. Constitution. Currently, the ERA Now Resolution has 131 cosponsors.