Vote, Damn You: Let's Talk About the Oregon Equal Rights Amendment, AKA Measure 89

Portland Mercury:

If you've waited this long to vote, there's a good chance you're probably not going to vote at all. And why would you? Up until this weekend, all you had to do was mark your ballot, find a stamp, and stick the thing in the closest mailbox—and you could feel okay knowing it would make it to Multnomah County's elections office in time for tomorrow's deadline. That's the whole idea behind a vote-by-mail election system. It's supposed to be easy to vote. So easy you'll actually get off your dead asses and do it. (Like nearly 40 percent of voters in Multnomah County already have.) But now it's Monday. The day before the deadline. And—let's not judge—but you've still not done your civic duty. Which means vote-by-mail—the thing that was supposed to get you to vote because it's almost more work not to vote—isn't an option. So what do you do? Now you have to leave the place you sleep and you have to find an official receptacle where you can drop your ballot off all the way until 8 pm tomorrow. Here's a list of locations (yes, we've shared it before). Don't be a laggard anymore. And maybe read our endorsement writeup again, if you need help. For instance, if you've been hung up by one of the wobblers on this year's ballot, the fight over whether Oregon needs its own version of an Equal Rights Amendment. We've said "sure"... but it's not exactly a simple decision.

<hr/>

FOR SOMETHING that says women should get a fair shake, Measure 89—the Oregon Equal Rights Amendment, or ERA—has become surprisingly contentious. Its champions say it's a necessary constitutional change that will give women a stronger leg to stand on, if and when they're treated disparately. Detractors argue the Oregon Supreme Court already conveyed the "strongest possible" protections to women decades ago, and that the ERA is little more than feel-good symbolism. There is yelling about this. But the fact is nothing much is going to happen—pass or fail. All Measure 89 actually does is insert a few new words into the state constitution, making it perfectly clear your rights can't be "abridged by the State of Oregon or by any political subdivision in this state on account of sex." It's great, except there's already a similar, more-encompassing provision in the constitution, one that grants equal protections to every "class of citizens." Measure 89's backers—among them retired Oregon Supreme Court justices, Governor John Kitzhaber, and many state and federal lawmakers—are quick to bring up historic injustices against women in Oregon that nonetheless prevailed under that language. But they also don't mention how the state constitution has been used to uphold injustice, ever since a 1984 Oregon Supreme Court decision made plain women have equal cover under the law. And backers can't say how Oregon's women would be concretely better off if the new language is added. A letter signed by four former state justices says the ERA would "acknowledge the contributions and importance of more than 50 percent of our citizens by finally providing women express recognition in our state's most important document." None of that sounds so bad. Then why fight against it? No one is, really. But the American Civil Liberties Union of Oregon (ACLU) has raised some interesting points. It says the ERA needlessly tampers with the constitution. Tinkering with our state's central principles requires a compelling reason, the ACLU contends, and this isn't it. And the organization raises the specter that specifically calling out women for equal protection may have the effect of diminishing legal cover for other groups. There's no proof of that, just like there's no proof the injustices women still face are going to be banished if we insert the new language. So where does that leave us? Conflicted, but also tired of the bullshit inequalities that persist. Measure 89 won't fix those, but go ahead and vote for it—as a show of support for a struggle that's gone on far too long. READ THE REST HERE>>>>

    [ Subscribe to the comments on this story ]

Read the full article here. Discuss below.