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Summary Of For The Equal Rights Amendment By Shirley Chisholm

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Many people think the most predominant social injustice in the 1960’s revolved around racism, which was mostly true. But few realize that gender inequality was a much more harmful than racism in aspects such as employment, family life, and government service, where women were disregarded and underpaid. To notice the differences between discriminations in gender and race, one would have to fall into both categories as Shirley Chisholm had, the first African-American Congresswoman. Having experienced this disadvantage, Chisholm directed her career in a different direction. On August 10th, 1969 in Washington D.C., Shirley Chisholm made history by addressing gender inequality in her speech, “For The Equal Rights Amendment”. By informing men and …show more content…

Shirley Chisholm broke restrictions within the African-American and female community by not only speaking her mind, but also talking about her experiences of being suppressed during the height of her political career. In her time in Congress, Shirley Chisholm mentioned that she was “far oftener discriminated against because [she was] a woman than because [she was] black” (France). Already an advocate for the poor areas by joining the Education and Labor Committee in Congress, she helped areas like Brooklyn and the Bronx to make it a point that her attention was directed towards a bigger, all-encompassing problem: gender inequality (Wilson). One of her biggest accomplishments in fighting for equality was hiring an all-female staff and providing more opportunities for them, saying “women [are] capable of entering many other professions and...they should be encouraged to do so,” which resonated with many women at the time (“Shirley Anita St. Hill Chisholm”). But since an all-female staff was not enough, she turned to the ERA for a broader solution (France). This marked the day Shirley Chisholm found the ERA to be the perfect solution to end discrimination. Shirley Chisholm presented this amendment to Congress in 1969, hoping they would approve the amendment with her captivating speech, persuading thousands of people to take her side on the

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