The Speech Communication Association's (SCA) decision to participate in a boycott of convention facilities to press for ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) has been ineffective (not a single state has ratified the ERA since the inception of the boycott) and may be counterproductive. In Illinois, the boycott was aimed primarily at the…

The Equal Rights Amendment controversy is studied as a conflict between two world views that are created by the rhetoric generated by proponents and opponents. Descriptions of the settings, actions, characters, and motivations of the opposing worlds reveal little common ground on which traditional argumentation can occur. (JMF)

The failure of the supporters of the Equal Rights Amendment to understand the rhetoric and world view of its opponents resulted in the defeat of the amendment. The opponents of the ERA had six arguments: women are not discriminated against; women will be drafted; protective labor laws will be eliminated; the ERA will destroy tradition regarding…

A survey of the methods of three feminist organizations offers general explanations for the failure of the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA). Limited to the emergence phase (1966-70) of the organizations, the survey examines the National Organization of Women (NOW), the Feminists, and the Women's Equity Action League (WEAL) in terms of their definition…

A study examined the content of direct mail materials, distributed by the National Organization for Women (NOW) and Stop ERA groups, favoring or opposing passage of the Equal Rights Amendment. It was expected that NOW's pieces would concentrate on counteracting or counterattacking Stop ERA's arguments against the amendment (military draft, lesbian…