The League of Women Voters Naperville and Will County NOW recently hosted a screening of the documentary ‘Equal Means Equal’ to raise awareness about equality for women under federal law.
About 40 people turned out to the movie viewing at the Naperville Municipal Center.
A Q&A was held with former Vice President of the National Organization for Women Bonnie Grabenhofer, and President of Illinois NOW Michelle Fadely.
Conversation centered on the equal rights amendment, which aims to amend the U.S. Constitution to guarantee equal rights regardless of sex.
The amendment originally passed through Congress in 1972 but did not garner the necessary 38 state ratifications by the 1979 deadline.
In March of this year, Nevada became the first state to ratify the amendment since 1977, bringing the count to 36 states decades after the deadline.
“We’re getting really close to getting it passed,” Grabenhofer said. “We passed it in Nevada. We need to get everybody enthusiastic and showing the support.”
Grabenhofer and Fadely said they believe Illinois could be the next state to ratify the amendment.
Reporting for Naperville News 17’s Beth Bria reports.
