This Tuesday is Election Day, and while many people have a clear choice for their presidential candidate,
here in New York, we have a ballot proposal misidentified as an “Equal Rights Amendment” or Proposition 1.
As Bishop Robert Brennan wrote in his recent column, “The text of Proposition 1 is broadly written and,
if enacted, would have dangerous consequences that threaten our fundamental beliefs.”
As faithful Catholics, many will have problems with the abortion-on-demand aspect of the proposal,
regardless of gestation length. For those who would look beyond the pro-life stance, there are many
other aspects to this ballot initiative that are problematic on their own.
Here is what the change in the state’s constitution would mean: It would add protections to the
State Constitution’s Bill of Rights to prohibit discrimination based on ethnicity, origin, age, disability, and
sex — including sexual orientation, gender identity, pregnancy, and pregnancy outcomes.
It would protect New Yorkers who seek access to abortion from discrimination. The proposed change to the constitution is written in a way that would allow it to be broadly interpreted by left-leaning state judges to the detriment of our Catholic values.
Another aspect of the proposed amendment is codifying a law allowing males to compete in women’s sports. Just this week, the United Nations released a report that showed almost 900 women have lost in competitions to men. The study, titled “Violence against women and girls in sports,” reported that more than 600 female athletes have come in second place at various sporting events and lost to competitors who were born male.
“The replacement of the female sports category with a mixed-sex category has resulted in an increasing
number of female athletes losing opportunities, including medals, when competing against males,” the
report stated. Not many reading the above statement can say it is representative of falling under the rubric of an equal rights amendment.
Another target is parents’ rights. Proposal 1 could tie the hands of parents in the state of New York by taking parental rights away from mothers and fathers and allowing minors to make their own decisions. According to The Coalition to Protect Kids-NY, which is campaigning across the state against the constitutional amendment, the proposal would do far more.
“The ERA could empower courts to allow minors to undergo irreversible medical procedures, such
as gender-transition surgeries, without parental consent,” the group claims. Many aspects of the measure are already part of the law in New York.
The fact that they want to enshrine these existing laws into the state constitution would only make these laws more difficult to strike down should voter sentiment change in the future.
