CONTENT WARNING
Materials in the Library of Virginia’s collections contain historical terms, phrases, and images that are offensive to modern readers. These include demeaning and dehumanizing references to race, ethnicity, and nationality; enslaved or free status; physical and mental ability; and gender and sexual orientation.
Context
In January 1975, President Gerald Ford established the National Commission on the Observance of International Women's Year. The purpose of the commission was to work in conjunction with the International Women’s Year proposed by the United Nations in 1972. Congress extended the work of the commission in 1977 with the election of President Jimmy Carter.
The commission planned and supported the National Women's Conference of 1977 in which 2000 delegates met to work on 26 resolutions of women’s rights. These included: the ERA, reproductive rights, sexual orientation, education reform, child care funding, minority rights, and issues related to families.
The National Commission on the Observance of International Women's Year published a report in 1977 in which they reviewed state laws that affected married, divorced, and widowed women. One group in the commission particularly explored the rights of women who fell into these categories and did not work outside the home.
This commission's report covered issues that included property ownership of married, widowed, and divorced women as well as domestic violence and divorce settlements. One of the solutions to alleviate women's inequality proposed by many of the commission's groups, politicians--including both presidents Ford and Carter--and activists was the ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment. Although a majority of Americans and politicians supported its inclusion in the Constitution, it stalled in most southern states after a heated campaign by anti-ERA activists to stop ratification. The ERA was the only constitutional amendment ever given a deadline for ratification by Congress, and it expired before ratification. Still, Virginia became the thirty-eight state to ratify the ERA in 2020. Because of the amendment's expiration, this ended up being a symbolic victory for women's rights; however, Virginia had already included an amendment in the state constitution that guaranteed equality. This report begins by arguing that the amendment, in place before this commission report was published, had not fundamentally changed the status of homemakers in the commonwealth.
Citation: Crouch, Richard E. The Legal Status of Homemakers in Virginia. Washington: National Commission on the Observance of International Women's Year, Homemakers Committee: United States Government Printing Office, 1977, Y 3.W 84:9/47, Library of Virginia.
The commission planned and supported the National Women's Conference of 1977 in which 2000 delegates met to work on 26 resolutions of women’s rights. These included: the ERA, reproductive rights, sexual orientation, education reform, child care funding, minority rights, and issues related to families.
The National Commission on the Observance of International Women's Year published a report in 1977 in which they reviewed state laws that affected married, divorced, and widowed women. One group in the commission particularly explored the rights of women who fell into these categories and did not work outside the home.
This commission's report covered issues that included property ownership of married, widowed, and divorced women as well as domestic violence and divorce settlements. One of the solutions to alleviate women's inequality proposed by many of the commission's groups, politicians--including both presidents Ford and Carter--and activists was the ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment. Although a majority of Americans and politicians supported its inclusion in the Constitution, it stalled in most southern states after a heated campaign by anti-ERA activists to stop ratification. The ERA was the only constitutional amendment ever given a deadline for ratification by Congress, and it expired before ratification. Still, Virginia became the thirty-eight state to ratify the ERA in 2020. Because of the amendment's expiration, this ended up being a symbolic victory for women's rights; however, Virginia had already included an amendment in the state constitution that guaranteed equality. This report begins by arguing that the amendment, in place before this commission report was published, had not fundamentally changed the status of homemakers in the commonwealth.
Citation: Crouch, Richard E. The Legal Status of Homemakers in Virginia. Washington: National Commission on the Observance of International Women's Year, Homemakers Committee: United States Government Printing Office, 1977, Y 3.W 84:9/47, Library of Virginia.
Standards
VS.I, VS.9, USII.1, USII.8, USII.9, VUS.1, VUS.13
Suggested Questions
Preview Activity
Scan It: Look at the document and scan it. Identify any words or phases that stand out. Why do you think those words or phrases stood out to you? What do they tell you about the topic of the document?
Post Activities
Analyze: What impression does this short excerpt give you about gender equality issues in Virginia in 1977? What do you make of the opening paragraph?
Up for Debate: The ERA has yet to ratified by the United States. Write a paragraph in which you express whether or not you support the ratification of the ERA. Be sure to include specific reasons and explanations for your choice. Be prepared to share your paragraph with the class or in small groups.
Scan It: Look at the document and scan it. Identify any words or phases that stand out. Why do you think those words or phrases stood out to you? What do they tell you about the topic of the document?
Post Activities
Analyze: What impression does this short excerpt give you about gender equality issues in Virginia in 1977? What do you make of the opening paragraph?
Up for Debate: The ERA has yet to ratified by the United States. Write a paragraph in which you express whether or not you support the ratification of the ERA. Be sure to include specific reasons and explanations for your choice. Be prepared to share your paragraph with the class or in small groups.