CNN’s Poppy Harlow lamented a lack of an “equal rights amendment” for women on Wednesday while talking with Democratic New York Gov. Kathy Hochul.
The duo were discussing abortion in light of a Texas case in which a woman sought and obtained a temporary injunction to abort her 21-week-old baby citing health complications. The Texas Supreme Court later halted the lower court’s ruling.
“Abortion’s gonna be on the ballot, it’s going to be on the ballot to codify that right in this state as people go also to vote on, which is amazing that we don’t have it yet, an equal rights amendment in this country for women,” Harlow said.
Hochul then went on to explain why even in a blue state like New York it’s important for the legislature to codify abortion access, citing a near upset by Republican Lee Zeldin in the 2022 governor’s race.
But the only problem with Harlow’s claim is that – speaking as a woman – we do have equal rights guaranteed to us under the 14th Amendment.
The amendment reads:
“No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.”
Abortion, at least according to the Supreme Court and a general read of the Bill of Rights, is not a Constitutionally protected right. Just because a group of progressive women sued five decades ago to have the opportunity to terminate their pregnancy does not mean it’s a fundamental right. Court’s make errors, justices make incorrect rulings. (RELATED: ‘A Cynical Strategy’: Less Than Two Years After Dobbs, Abortion Is Headed To The Supreme Court Again)
Women are not lacking rights nor protections to those rights and creating another amendment catering directly to women opens up the door to a myriad of equal right claims and issues. Will there need to be a multitude of equal rights amendments for transgenders, non-binary folk, different ethnicities or races?
The simple answer to the above, of course, is the 14th Amendment, which we have. No discrimination for no reason whatsoever.
Imagine the shock on Harlow’s face when she finds out about it!