January 13, 2023I www.ggrwhc.org I

50 Years Later: A Look Back at the Fight Over the ERA in Grand Rapids

As ERA ratification deadline approaches, proponents and opponents fight to be heard.

https://www.floridamemory.com/items/show/102822

Join us on Saturday, January 21 at 9:30 a.m. at the downtown Grand Rapids Public Library for our first program of 2023! We're the lead off program in a day-long series of talks sponsored by History Detectives, a consortium of local history groups: 2023 Programs – History Detectives GR

In our program, 50 Years Later: A Look Back at the Fight Over the ERA in Grand Rapids, presenters Nora Salas and Ruth Stevens will provide a local perspective on the political tempest generated by the seemingly straightforward language of the ERA with an eye to how the debate over the ERA has relevance today. In Grand Rapids, the local chapters of ERAmerica, the National Organization for Women, the League of Women Voters, and labor organizations led the fight for ratification, while the increasingly influential Eagle Forum, with support from many religious organizations, warned of dire consequences if the ERA were to become law. Now, 100 years after the Equal Rights Amendment was first introduced in Congress, join us in looking at a time when passionate disagreements brought women's rights issues to the forefront and a foundation for women's later political activism was laid.

Save the date! March 15 Annual Reception and Program

We're happy to be back in person for our annual reception on Wednesday, March 15, 2023 at 6:30 p.m.at the St. Cecilia Music Center, 24 Ransom Ave. We'll celebrate being together again with a reception with light refreshments at 6:30 p.m., followed by our program - The Second Surge: Women Running for Public Office in the 1970's. We hope you will be able to join us to hear JoEllyn Clarey build upon her work on women in public office in Grand Rapids, featured in Women Who Ran, to examine women's political forays in the 1970's, a pivotal time for women who aspired to public office. See below for our complete lineup of programs for January, March, and April. We look forward to seeing you!

Grand Rapids City Commission, 1961, with Evangeline Lamberts, the first woman to serve on the City Commission until the election of Norene Brooks in 1975.

Grand Rapids History Center, Col. 054, Box 10, Folder 22.

All upcoming events:

January 21, 2023, 9:30 a.m.: 50 Years Later: A Look Back at the Fight Over the ERA in Grand Rapids - details at 2023 Programs – History Detectives GR

March 15, 2023, 6:30 p.m.: The Second Surge: Women Running for Public Office in the 1970's. Please RSVP at https://GGRWHCMarch152022.eventbrite.com

April 13, 2023, 7:00 p.m.: The Grand Rapids Dominican Sisters: Serving People on the Margins of Society, Grand Rapids Public Library, downtown.