August 26, 2020 

New York, NY:

As the United States celebrates the 100th anniversary of the ratification of the 19th Amendment granting women access to vote, UNITED SIKHS recognizes that democracy thrives with women’s access to full civic participation.   

Support for equal rights for women has been a part of the Sikh culture and beliefs from the inception of the Sikh religion more than 500 years ago and Sikhs have realized what Americans only now are debating.  “In Sikhi, women are equal to their male counterparts.  Guru Nanak, the first guru of Sikhs, clearly commands that women are equal.  “They may have played different roles from men as mothers, as daughters, as wives, as sisters, but they are nevertheless equal in the political and civic sense,” states Jagdeep Singh, Executive Director at UNITED SIKHS. 

Wanda Sanchez Day, the first UNITED SIKHS female Chief Legal Officer and National Legal Director, states, “Equal rights means full access to the rights and responsibilities of living in a democratic society, free of discrimination based on sex.  Voting is as basic a right for women, as is pay equity and access to leadership opportunities,” she says.

An Equal Rights Amendment has been pending since its ratification in the U.S. Congress in the 1970s.   It states, “Equality of rights under the law shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex.”

Congress proposed ratification of the ERA by three-quarters or 38 of the 50 States but the deadline expired in the 1980s. In January 2020, the State of Virginia, ignoring the deadline, became the 38th State to ratify the ERA.  On February 13, 2020, the U.S. House of Representatives took initiative and passed resolution H.J. Res. 79 to remove the deadline. https://www.congress.gov/congressional-report/116th-congress/house-report/378/1.  It is now up to the U.S. Senate to pass S.J.Res.6 and the ERA shall be part of the Constitution whenever ratified by the legislatures of three-fourths of the states.  https://www.congress.gov/bill/116th-congress/senate-joint-resolution/6.

Like the 19th Amendment, that gave women access to the voting polls, the ERA is an important Amendment because it will help remove barriers to equality that impede women’s progress.  Examples of barriers include, according to the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO), that only 16% of board seats in the S&P 1500 were filled by women, up only 8% from 1997. https://www.gao.gov/products/GAO-16-30.  Rep. Carolyn B. Maloney (D-N.Y.) publicly stated in support of H.J. Res. 79 about the state of women’s rights in the U.S., “We’ve seen it when the Supreme Court gutted the Violence Against Women Act, we’ve seen it when judges don’t enforce equal pay for equal work […].”  In addition, according to the U.S. Census, in 2018, women earned an average of only 81% of the wages earned by men. See https://data.census.gov/cedsci/table?q=wages&tid=ACSST1Y2018.S2002&hidePreview=false.

Mr. Tejinder Bains of the Law Office of Ali & Bains in New York said, “For a nation as great as ours, the ERA seems to be a good thing too long delayed.”

“Equal pay for equal work is a key pillar for Equality. While we have made great strides in seeking equal rights for 50% of the population, ERA is the only logical next step”, Jeevanjot K. Singh, Director Community Engagement and Education, UNITED SIKHS.

“We at UNITED SIKHS will do our part.  We will write letters, join coalitions and we will speak out in favor of women and women’s equality,” stated Ms. Sanchez Day.

Write to your U.S. Senators today and urge them to vote to remove the obstacles to ratification of the ERA.

To identify your Senator click on this link.

How to Find My Senator:https://www.nysenate.gov/find-my-senator

How to Contact My Senator: https://www.senate.gov/senators/How_to_correspond_senators.htm

If you need assistance, please reach us at law-USA@unitedsikhs.org.

UNITED SIKHS
International Civil and Human Rights Advocacy
By: Gundeep Singh, Media Coordinator