The Connecticut labor news., 1922-03-03
MAJORITY OF WOMEN OPPOSE
 AMENDMENT TO LAWS THAT WILL SERIOUSLY AFFECT RIGHTS

resolution or to Miss Smiths letter above referred to, thus, by their silence, con- frming the general opinion if not ac- tually admitting, that this blanket amend ment will, if adopted, destroy all indus trial protective laws for women and that the National Woman's Party ac- tually favors such destruction.
 The opinion of many leading lawyers has been asked as to whether or not all endangered by this so-called blanket amendment" and a wide divergency of opinion is shown by the answers received. The very fact that lawyers are already disagreed shows that judges will dis agree and that ultimately this question must come before the United States Su- preme Court for final decision.
 Workers are afraid of litigation and court decisions and with good reason. They know that too often judges are not just to all classes but that they are usually generous to the employing classes
 And, if the courts are appealed to it the appeal They will have no reason to do so. All they will need to do and probably all they will do is to notify em- ployes that this amendment nullihes all these protective laws, and that i'll future they will be disregarded This will put
 it up to the workers affected, the women workers to take 1t to the courts, which they will probably do if they can raise sufficient money to meet the ex- pense But even SO, what will be the situation pending final decision? Just this, that during the time of litigation with appeal from court to court all these laws will be disregarded by employers, women workers will be compelled to ac- cept the old conditions of long hours, small pay, night work, etc., which were changed only by yearsof unremitting ef fort. And even after final decision on would be favorable to employees, they would be compelled to again appeal to the courts and this time individually by civil suit, to collect whatever wages might have accrued to them during the period the laws were disregarded and suspended by employers. That is part but only a part of what such an amend ment to the Federal constitution would do to the working women, but even that part surely is enough.
 Nor is this proposed legislation dan gerous to women workers alone. It IS fully as manacing to men for whenever the standard for working women is low cred, the standard for men is ound to be-
 NIGH CdllIlOl expect lO nave IIlt OSIlcIlt of good wages, short hours and gener- ally satisfactory working conditions if the employer has at hand store of cheap labor, obliged to work long hours and under unsatisfactory conditions on which he can draw. And, if through bad working conditions the women of the race are to become physical weak lings 1t is the generations of working mems families that will have to pay the price.
 The Wornen's Trade Union League and all working women will go as far as any women in the world for actual citizenship rights and for equal economic rights with men. But working women know the difference etween actual bequil- ity and theoretical equality. And these women do not propose to surrender or to jeopardize industrial standards won, and exchange 30 years of progress for a possible gain in some other direction, ob- tainable in another way, for wherever injustices to women otbain they can be reformed by specific federal or state laws which will not sacrifice the inter ests of working women.
 Therefore, too much attention cannot eb paid to this proposed vicious legisla- tion. It must be borne in mind that the National Woman's Party has never affirmed that it believes in any sort of welfare legislation for women. It is we'll known that many of its members, even members of it's executive board do not. The National Woman's Party has returned only an evasive reply to re- l quests that it state its exact position. Remember also that contrary to the impression, the National Wonan's Party is trying to give, this legislation is not favored by the great majority of women, but as the Boston Telegram says in its issue of January 17th:
 "The unfortunate thing is that the majority of women are not in terested in this scheme-to repeal all laws which distinguish between men and women, ubt a few fanatics
 are leading, insisting, demanding. If men and women are alike under the law, the statutes giving privi- leges to womn will be repealed" The qustion is bound to arise whether the National Woman's Party i'll its fight for strictly equal rights is not acting as an agent of the employers who are al-