Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1952-02-10
Equal Rights
Discussed in
Bar JOurnuI
By Frances Lide

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rel. Florida lawyer. was campaign
ing for enactment Of Florida's
Married Womans Emancipation
Act. one Of her most effective
tactics was to line up the support
'fof the Florida Bar Association.
Women worked hard for the act
she recalls, but it was having
members Of the bar association
behind the legislation that put il
over.
On becoming chairman Of the
National Woman's Party last May,
Mrs. Murrell took the leadership
in a similar passage Of an
Equal Rights Amendment to the
Constitution, designed to guaran-
tee the complete equality Of the
rights of men and women on a
national scale.
And one of her first moves was
to seek the support of the Ameri-
can Bar Association.
Last September. the association
appointed a committee to study
the proposed amendment for a
report to be made at its next
national meeting.
The serious consideration being
given to the proposal is evidenced
by the American Bar Association
Journals publication Of an article
by Mrs. Murrell in its January
issue entitled, Full Citizenship
for Women: An Equal Rights
Amendment"
Editorial Included
The same issue also carries an
editorial calling attention to Mrs.
Murrell's many arguments which
strongly support" passage of the
amendment by Congress, while
pointing out, at the same time,
that the subject is still highly
controversial.
Reprints of the article are be-
ing prepared by the party for
mailing to members of Congress,
leaders of organizations affiliated
with the party in its campaign for
adoption of the amendment, and
State chairmen.
The text of the Equal Rights
Amendment-"Equality Of rights
under the law shall not be denied
or abridged by the United States
or by any State on account Of
sex"-iS quoted by Mrs. Murrell
in her opening paragraph.
Then the author raises the
questions: "Why, in order to at
tain full citizenship, do American
women want an amendment to the
Constitution? Is it not enough that
State legislation is rapidly giving
them as many, If not more rights,
than women have possessed since
matriarchal Egypt, at least during
the period of written history"
If there were any stability in
State law. this might suffice. the
author declares. Unfortunately,
she adds, States rights are sub
ject to continual change.
Mrs. Murrell pointed out her
own States Married Woman'S Act,
granting complete equality under
law to women, was passed in 1913.
''Yet never a legislature has con-
vened since which did not pass
upon bills designed to repeal that
act" she states. Rights based
upon State or Federal statutes are
unstable as the sand"
Interpretation at Fault
The Woman's Party leader also
asserts that, while the American
male is a citizen by virtue of rights
guaranteed him in the ConStitu-
ton, none of these guarantees at
tach to women. "Only the right
to vote, placed in the Constitution
by amendment, includes females
In that document" she pointed
out.
The fault lies in the interpre-
tation given the Constitution by
the Courts, rather than in the
Constitution itself, she maintains.
For instance, she said, ever since
passage of the Fourteenth Amend
ment, women have been trying to
come under its nberating and pro-
tective clauses. 1.-THE Supreme
Court held that the State cannot
bar Negro men from jury duty
because to do so would brand them
as inferior citizens and deprive
them Of equal protection of the
laws guaranteed by the Four
tenth Amendment" she writes.
But In the same decision, the
Court held that jury service may
be limited to males"
Reviewing the status of the pro-
posed amendment, Mrs. Murrell
recalled that plankS supporting IT.
were written in the national plat
forms of the two major political
parties in 1914 and 1948.
Over 80 million women have
declared themselves, through their
organizations, as supporting it
and half as many mems groups
have Endorsed it, she added.