Eagle Forum Research Paper

Derek I Snedden
POLS-Y 353
Professor Fowler
20 July 2015
Eagle Forum: The Pro-family movement The Eagle forum was founded by Phyllis Schlafly in 1972 and began as a trust fund to defend conservative agendas in 1967. During the proposal of the Equal Rights Amendment in 1972, Schlafly founded a group with more proactive approach called “Stop ERA” with one goal in mind, to defeat the ratification of ERA. After the success of the “Stop ERA” campaign, Phyllis Schlafly founded the eagle forum, a pro family group dedicated to “opposing all encroachments against American sovereignty through…feminist goals” (Schlafly). Althoug the primary interaction that eagle forum has had with the womens movement was the ERA, they also are incessantly combating

As of 2013 this interest group has reported over 80,000 members. The women’s movement otherwise known as the feminist movement refers to a campaign with the aim of reforming issues such as, reproductive rights, pay gap, woman’s suffrage, and rape. Although, Schlafly is a notable conservative woman, recently her ideas have fallen out of favor in the right wing, in order to make room for new conservative women, such as Sarah Palin. In public appearances Sarah Palin is known for her pro-family, Christian fundamentalist ideals. However, something that is little know about her is that she supports feminism and even speaks highly of radical feminists such as Alice Paul, calling her a “grizzly woman”. Palin, unlike Schlafly has found a middle ground between heavy social conservatism and feminism, something that has given her a lot of respect in the feminist movement. Schlafly however, has received significant criticism from prominent feminists such as Gloria Steinem who have remarked at the irony of Schlaflys positions on women staying at home to be a mother, while she herself takes on the role of political activist, lawyer, editor of a newspaper and speaker at anti-liberal