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Washington, DC - Representatives Tom Reed (R-NY), Carolyn B. Maloney (D-NY) and Jackie Speier (D-CA), House leaders on the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA), were joined by actors and activists Patricia Arquette and Alyssa Milano, and other stakeholders, to launch a new fight in the 116th Congress to ratify the ERA to the U.S. Constitution and guarantee equal legal rights for all American citizens regardless of sex.

"Discrimination in any form is never acceptable. We will continue our bipartisan campaign and as we work to ensure this historic amendment has a fair shot at being enshrined into our constitution – not only for the thousands of women who have been discriminated against, but for the next generation of women," said Reed. "We care about being a constant advocate to ensure change and consistent enforcement of anti-discrimination law, and we would like to thank Rep. Maloney and Rep. Speier for their unwavering commitment to this issue."

"Since the inception of our country women were left out of the Constitution – intentionally and for the ensuing centuries women in America have been fighting for their full equal rights in the American Constitution. We have waited long enough," said Arquette. "This is 2019, and it is time for the United States of America to afford women the equal rights they have been denied in their own nation for so long. It is time we step into our new future - the fair and equitable future American women have long been waiting for. We are done waiting. I thank Representatives Speier, Maloney and Reed for their bipartisan leadership on this issue."



"Passing the ERA would put the full weight of our Constitution behind women's equality, behind fighting sexual discrimination and harassment, for equal pay for equal work, and against policies that harm women just because they are women," said Milano. "We supported each other when we held men accountable by saying Me Too and Times Up – now today, we say 'the time is now.' The time is now to pass the ERA so that everyone in this country has the opportunity to reach their full potential. I want to thank Representatives Maloney and Speier for their steadfast fight for the ERA. I'm proud to join them in this fight."

"On multiple fronts today – in the White House and in State houses across our county –women's hard-fought rights and the progress that we've made over the course of a century are under attack," said Maloney. "And it's happening, in part, because our Constitution does not contain the word 'women.' Because it does not guarantee our equal rights. So, we need to make it clear, that equal means equal. To do that, we must spell it out in the Constitution: E-R-A. This will make a world of difference to all our children. Shouldn't we eliminate any doubt that men and women are equal? Shouldn't equality be the default, the inalienable truth? Now is the time. We are demanding a seat at the table and we are ready to make equality a reality."

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