How Does the Republican Party Celebrate Women's Equality Day?

Statement

Myth tells us that 94 years ago today, in 1920, women were finally granted the right to vote. The reason this is a myth is because this right was not "granted" -- it was fought for tooth and nail over decades by women who demanded equality under the law at the price of their very lives.

Unfortunately, since that victory, both voting rights and women's rights have been under systematic attack by a Republican party that seems to be interested only in advocating for a system in which some are more equal than others. Our democracy was founded on the rights and freedoms laid out in our Constitution, and our leaders -- regardless of party affiliation -- are sworn to uphold them to the best of their ability. In their efforts to deny rights to voters and women alike, the Republican Party has abandoned this sacred trust.

94 years after the 19th Amendment passed, we see Republican attacks on women's rights and voting rights at the federal and state levels. Three years ago, Maine Republicans passed a bill -- signed by Republican Governor Paul LePage -- to deny same-day voter registration to Maine voters. As head of the ACLU of Maine, I co-chaired a broad coalition of Democrats, Republicans, Greens and Independents alike to put same-day registration on the ballot and restore those rights to Maine citizens. Although our voting rights were being systematically attacked by Republicans in power, it was a coalition of citizens from all party affiliations who stood up together to fight back against this blatant effort to deny us our rights.

Just as most Mainers endorsed same day voter registration, most Mainers believe that women should be equal to men under the law. Again, Republicans are blocking progress. Just this past April, Republicans in the U.S. Senate, including my opponent, Susan Collins, blocked passage of equal pay for equal work. Her vote against equal pay for equal work is particularly disturbing, given that a report by the American Association of University Women indicates that Maine women earn 83 cents for every dollar earned by men.

These issues are all interconnected. Just as the Republican Party stands together to block measures designed to advance women's equality and protect voting rights, those of us interested in upholding the Constitution need to continue to fight back against those efforts. Our democracy is designed to ensure the rights of the vocal minority while upholding the rights of all of our citizens in equal measures. So why is the Republican Party in this country -- and in Maine particularly -- so intent on denying what we are supposed to uphold: the rights and freedoms of our citizens?

Americans believe that expanded voting rights are good for our democracy and a testament to the values laid out in our constitution. Americans believe that women deserve equality under the law, and that efforts to deny them such equality are a fundamental affront to our values as a nation.

Today is Women's Equality Day, when we celebrate the passage of the 19th Amendment and recommit ourselves to the preservation of our rights and freedoms. But to do so, we need to face some hard truths. The leadership of the Republican Party is actively working against the efforts of too many Americans -- men and women, Republicans and Democrats alike -- to advance our democracy and ensure that all our citizens can participate equally.

What began formally in Seneca Falls in 1848 was a movement to both acknowledge and dismantle the second-class status to which women had been relegated. Pay discrimination and attacks on voting indicate we still have to do to achieve full equality. Moving our country ever forward will take sustained cooperation and a shared vision of equality and equal rights. We'll get there a lot faster if the leadership of the Republican Party were working with us, instead of against us.

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