Good good. Good to meet you Carrie with the House Democrats and we know. Alright, good morning everybody. We're gonna go and get started here in just a minute so we can ask you to take your seats if we can get our speakers to be our members. Good morning everybody. Thank you for being here this morning. We're going to hear from Senator Louise Lucas, the President of the Senate gonna hear from Speaker Philip Corn from Attorney General Mark Herring from Carol Jenkins from the ERA Coalition, Tony Van Pelt and Kobe Hoffman from Now and Eleanor Smeal from the Feminist majority, so we will go ahead and get started with Senator Lucas. Today is a momentous occasion of Virginia, 30 -eighth State to ratify Into the constitution is long overdue, ensuring equal rights with every American is an extreme important. We have waited over 400 years and now is all time. President over the Senate during this historic vote and the first African American and first woman to hold the title as President Pro Tempore, I feel the significance and the gravity of this moment. I think of my ancestors who arrived for these shores 400 years ago. I think of the history of my people being recognized as human not being recognized as human beings fighting for their freedom fighting to receive the education fighting to have a place. Society and fighting for equality. I am offering minded of the first woman who came to this land, having the audacity the right for her husband, the woman's suffrage movement, and even in 2020 to fight to receive the same pay as men for the same work. All for equality today is the day that we update that all men are created equal to truly the meaning of. All are created equal. Thank you. Thank you so much Madam President Louise Lucas. Fighting for this moment for a long long time and we only got the Center today just makes it even that much. First of all, let's celebrate today, January 20, -second 2020 Once and for all we in Virginia will become the 30 - eight state to ratify the To Washington, DC, for its in China and the institution of the United States, how about that? The eyes of the nation are on the Commonwealth of Virginia. Thank you so much to Attorney General Mark Herring for being with us as we set out this historic action, you have been such a champion for women in Virginia. We cannot be more grateful for your commitment and your dedication to a shining and ensuring that equal Equal Rights Amendment rightful place in our nation's founding document as acknowledge House majority Leader Harry and House ERA. Patron Jennifer Carroll Foy, and she patrons Joan Warren. Hello. For your heart and soul into making today's history possible and thank you and thank you to all of you. Thank you to so many in this room and outside this room, these incredible activists and volunteers around to come well and the country who have persisted in this effort day in day out year in year out today is your day. We all hear a deeply appreciative of the thousands of women and men who have marched before us who worked to make it a more just and equal society. And have for the last 90 - seven years fought for the Equal Rights Amendment and to make sure that it's in the Constitution. I cannot possibly begin to thank everybody and enough for all of your all of your dedications, dedication, hard work effort and sacrifice and leadership for many of my colleagues voting today who have felt the sting of discrimination fought hard and honestly to be treated equally in their workplaces and Institutional structures today we are making history. We are walking down a more inclusive path once where our daughters and their daughters after them will have people protection under the law and the Constitution. As you all know is long long overdue and it is one of the many actions that we will take this session to ensure that we address injustice and lift up all Virginians. So while we celebrate today the historic day the victory for women in across our nation, we also thank the heroes who's backs. We stand up this afternoon when we ratify people Rights amendment, let us all take a moment to honor their struggle by continuing our work to build a more just and a more equal a more fair and therefore and more prosperous commonwealth. Thank you everybody for all that you've done and continue to do. I am give you. Man needs no introduction, my friend and yours our fabulous Attorney General Mark Herring. Good morning everyone. I'm gonna be really brief because today is about the leadership of the women you see up here and thousands and thousands of Virginians and Americans they represent and the ERA coalition now VA ratify ERA Speaker Filler corn President Pro Temp Lucas and others. You all have brought us to the precipice of history. We are and today I am more proud than ever to be in Virginia, we are truly gonna make his. There and become the 30 eighth and final state needed to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment and because of our great Commonwealth General quality is gonna be in shrine in the constitution, making men and women equal and law affording them the fundamental protections against discrimination that they have been lacking for entirely too long and what is even more amazing. is it the ERA is gonna pass in the General Assembly where the Speaker of the House the President protect. Second and both clerks of the House and Senate are women. Though there are some out there who have already deemed our efforts to pass this historic amendment is beautiful to the naysayers and to the opponents of women to women's equality. I say do not underestimate Virginia and do not underestimate this movement. Women have suffered as a result of discrimination for 400 years, and if you try to throw up roadblocks, this movement has shown time and again they will go over around or just straight through. I'm excited to witness history today and what's those votes are cast. I'm as committed as cover to making sure that we have a used every single tool at our disposal to make sure the Equal Rights Amendment becomes a part of the United States Constitution as it should be Thank you all very much. Hey everybody. I'm Harold Jenkins, President of the ERA coalition and thrilled to be here at this particular moment when we celebrate a truly foremen habit Philip when we first saw actually make sure that I say Speaker Philip more. We are so proud of you We met in New York. This will be promised in New York City. We're gonna do it. We're gonna do it fast and get it done and guess what she did it. So. So much. Tell your health we all are to be with the same shortly and all women led event in the in both chambers. I must say Liz Lucas, President approached him of the Senate. thank you so much for for your great service and we're looking forward to to to have you there Shanelle Harry so many women whose names the last time. We would not have been called we are calling out because that's what they are in charge. congratulations to Virginia for becoming number 30 - eight and thank you to every person with us here today. It's not easy to write yourself into history books, but the state of Virginia has done it. Women and girls everywhere are grateful to you. For this tremendous victory. The ERA coalition believes every person in America diverse deserves an equal future. Our work rest The only way to provide that is to amend the rule that governs our lives in this country the constitution because of your work here today we are closer than we've ever been to that equal future. The NRA coalition is comprised of more than 100 organizations across the country. Okay every single day to make people Rights amendment reality. We are so proud of the work that our organizations, VAR Va ratify ERA. I mean Davis. Thank you so much. Much appreciation for your thankful for that the feminist majority Ellis meal who is work on this, she told me reminded us last night has worked on this for 50 years. The National Organization for Women, Tony Thank you for your leadership, The National League of Women voters. I have joined us in Virginia Chapter two. we wanna commend you for the work that you've done. I don't think we can finish this without welcoming and thanking and praising the Delta. I say to them every time I say them and you know Bradley, you'll know this, I said, OK, but I love you from Mendon word. it has been our honor to work beside legislators like Senator Jeff Deli. It's Jennifer Carroll, Foy and and all of their colleagues to get into this particular day. Women. Thank you so much. Coalitions research is demonstrated that the United States is ready for constitutional equality for women if you wanna know how much by 90 -. Acne 100 years of persistent determined work that ERA is on fire Last April. We had the first year again Congress. the first one in 30 - six years, will gloriously have the 30 - eight States shortly and then States 30 - 94040 - 150 right behind them, and we now know that the week of February tenth. the US House of Representatives will hold a vote on HR 70 -. Founder and Michael Person Justin Worth We stand up. He started all of this work five years ago. I know you know Bettina here 20. The coalition and of girls and women across the country who have a new way of looking at life of their possibilities. We thank her so much for working down here in Virginia. President as President now and I've had the honor of working for people rise for woman so for 50 years it has if anybody would have told us when we started out lobbying Congress, we had that disrupt the hearings on the 18 year-old vote. we had a silent visual. The steps of silent Of the capital, the Senate, it was blocked in the Center lock in the House in the House committees in the Senate jammed out of there. That's it. If anybody would have told us it was gonna take 50 years. Thank God be enough. Every inch of the way when there was a wrong block, it lets a one major thing. We fought harder. We took a pledge right at the beginning that we would never give up. We will never give in until women were equally in this constitution of ours and. Slow down we soon more, We pick it anymore. We demonstrated more and I my opinion if they had just given us this thing for me, the powerful women's political movement that help produce about in the state too. the constant work at the grassroots level, the building of women's political action committees all the the steps on the way has. Our nation and how if we were ready to play and we're saying what would be the last day and we would have said Do you know every office in high Office of Speaker because protein the major floor leaders with the women and women of color at all of them be feminists, they were thought they were smoking something. So if you've not only happen but I wanna have every person in this room and there's a lot of students here too take a pledge that you're gonna make sure that this amendment that is being ratified not once can you imagine it took so long to get out of Virginia. We're gonna have it voted on twice successfully in 12 days. That we're gonna see this to the end and it's gonna be in the constitution and for all the naysayers that protect time limit is not finding and we're gonna argue in court, but we're not gonna just rely on lawyers and courts. We also going to Congress and demanding it be removed and we're gonna nationalize this issue right now. Virginia. We were the top three issues with this last election and we're one of the reasons the houses and both flipped and believe me. Flip it at the National level. We bought for tomorrow because you follow the injustice are not just words. they change people's lives. They open doors and just think two generations of women that I have been a part of have been denied that and two generations before this is a hundred year project is outrageous. We should be mad about it. We should think about all the denied opportunities, but I hope it just makes us fight harder do better. Make this country the country should be for equality and Justice. Everybody. I'm so proud to be here today to celebrate the formal ratification of the equal rights of women in Virginia conversion across it's a good name today because we're witnessing a crossing point industry. constitutional equality is no longer a goal is unforced to happen. although we're not very happy. this day has been a long long time coming and credit for this historic victory student new leadership of the Virginia Legislature and the Grand Swell. Activists and voters who put them there because of them because of us, not only did we see Virginia pass the threshold. The Constitution requires for final adoption of the amendment, but two women will make history today by presiding over the Virginia House and Center. For this debate, You know it takes a woman. Two more things when you don't accomplish first, we turn our attention to the next bill that McConnell wants to carry on his legislative graveyard. We must push for a vote on Jay resolution, six of the artificial timeline imposed in the Bramble of the Equal Rights Amendment in 1970, - two legal analysis don't believe such deadlines are constitutional that the Senate bill is an extra insurance that already has the bipartisan support of Lisa Murkowski and Susan Collins women as the President of Now, I'm honored to carry on the legacy of Nas former President Eleanor Smeal. It is your brand of feminist activism that we honor here today. A formal resolution advocating for the amendment to the US Constitution was adopted. It knows second National Conference in 1960, - seven and the whole country knows signature random activism for the first time when February Disrupted Senate hearings to demand the ERA be considered by the entire floor of Congress. Our original Equal Rights Amendment banner, which had made is still in use today. Marching most recently just last week in the Women's March in DC, Alice Paul called her movement assorted Mosaic. Each of us puts in one little stone and then you get a great mosaic at the end, she said. Let's all take. A moment to admire the beauty and historic mosaic made her today and put our power to use as citizens full citizens, women activists and Venice voters to defend women's rights achieve constitutionally body and elect more feminist women and allies to office. Thank you. Would like to note that we would not be here without the state's number one through 30 - seven to be able to have the historic 30 - eight today and I would like to recognize in Virginia that everyday citizens across the state from Big Stone Gap to the Eastern Shore made sure that we were on the 30 -eighth thousands Alive to hold and to move forward to steeply held American ideal of equality and I would like to recognize not only now and the Chapters, Charlottesville and the state Virginia, but the famous majority and the members here in Virginia ratifying ERA. The Delta Sigma Theta Sorority. Voters equal means people American Civil Liberties Union the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, The ERA coalition equality now the Virginia municipally, the National Conference of Black Women and Muslim Community Center Generation ratify the Virginia Education Association, The poor People's campaign the US. Mayors so many towns, cities and cafes that just do numerous today, the American College of Radiology. The Committee for the status of women, numerous civic associations, the PTAs, many local Democratics committees design club, and The American Bar Association, American, Virginia American Federation of Labor of the AFC, the US, the University students, James Madison, George Mason, Corporations, Businesses, Foundations McIntosh Foundation, and our legislators are many legislators who believe across United States and in Virginia, in particular that we can correct. United States Constitution for each race as we have before and we will do again today. Thank you everybody.