Op-Ed: In support of Phyllis Schlafly
Rachel Wisdom
Issue date: 5/5/08 Section: @Press
On Wednesday morning, Washington University Professor Mary Ann Dzubak stated that the school awards honorary degrees to people whom it wishes to hold up as "worthy of emulation." Phyllis Schlafly, she argued, is not this sort of person. On the contrary, I would argue that Mrs. Schlafly fits the qualification perfectly. Based on her political successes, her defense of women's rights, and her hard work throughout her career, Mrs. Schlafly is most worthy of emulation.
Phyllis Schlafly's most noteworthy accomplishment is her incredible victory against the ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment, which stated that "equality of rights under the law shall not be denied or abridged…on account of sex." When she first turned her attention to ERA in 1972, the amendment was eight states away from ratification and a plank in both parties' platforms. It was supported by 90% of the U.S. Congress, every living former president, and nearly every state governor. Yet against all odds, Mrs. Schlafly managed to galvanize women across America, single-handedly leading a ten-year, uphill battle to defeat ERA.
How did she do it? She relentlessly pointed out the ways in which ratification of the innocuous-sounding ERA would actually represent a loss for women's rights, not a victory. The amendment, she noted, would do away with laws that privileged women, such as those that require husbands to financially support their wives as well as labor laws that protect women in industry from compulsory overtime and from lifting certain amounts of weight. It would deny federal funding to single-sex women's colleges, prevent elderly widows from receiving Social Security benefits based on their late husband's earnings, and make it much more difficult for women to automatically receive alimony and child custody in divorce cases. Most importantly, Mrs. Schlafly argued, ERA would end women's exemption from the military draft. In the event of a draft, young women would be forced into combat in equal numbers with young men.
Mrs. Schlafly fought ERA because it took rights away from women. She is a strong defender of women's rights, including the special privileges certain laws grant them. It has been frequently asserted over the last several days that Mrs. Schlafly "tells women they should stay at home." Nothing could be further from the truth. On the contrary, Mrs. Schlafly encourages women to be politically active, as she has been throughout her career, which includes multiple books and two runs for Congress. She considers education to be an important goal for young women-she herself has a law degree, and her mother graduated from Washington University in 1920-and she is fully supportive of women who choose to have careers. Far from viewing women as "weak and emotional"-as Professor Dzubak suggested on KMOX radio on Wednesday morning-Mrs. Schlafly has argued throughout her career for women's mental and emotional strength, suggesting that their ability to manage home and family makes them even more resilient than men. As Mrs. Schlafly stated on KMOX on Wednesday, she "admire(s) the role of the full-time homemaker." If women wish to stay at home and give full attention to their children and their household, Mrs. Schlafly argues that they have a right to do so, and she strongly supports women who make this choice.
Her defense of women's rights aside, Mrs. Schlafly's intelligence and hard-working nature also make her a worthy example for students and graduates. She graduated Phi Beta Kappa from Washington University, earning a bachelor's degree in three years while simultaneously working 48 hours a week testing ammunition in a local factory. She went on to receive her master's from Harvard in a mere eight months. A Washington University political science professor at the time wrote that she "is the most capable woman student we have had in this department in ten years." In the midst of the time-consuming ERA fight, Mrs. Schlafly enrolled in Washington University School of Law, saying that she would study and attend classes in her "spare time." She graduated on time near the top of her class. Over the course of her career, she has written ten books, including an 800-page study of U.S. nuclear policy, on which she became an expert during the Cold War.
As a staunch defender of women's rights, a leader of a national political movement, and a successful, hard-working individual, Mrs. Schlafly is certainly someone "worthy of emulation." She deserves this honor and she deserves to be held in high regard by Washington University students.
Rachel is a freshman in the College of Arts & Sciences and can be reached via e-mail at rrwisdom@artsci.wustl.edu.
Phyllis Schlafly's most noteworthy accomplishment is her incredible victory against the ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment, which stated that "equality of rights under the law shall not be denied or abridged…on account of sex." When she first turned her attention to ERA in 1972, the amendment was eight states away from ratification and a plank in both parties' platforms. It was supported by 90% of the U.S. Congress, every living former president, and nearly every state governor. Yet against all odds, Mrs. Schlafly managed to galvanize women across America, single-handedly leading a ten-year, uphill battle to defeat ERA.
How did she do it? She relentlessly pointed out the ways in which ratification of the innocuous-sounding ERA would actually represent a loss for women's rights, not a victory. The amendment, she noted, would do away with laws that privileged women, such as those that require husbands to financially support their wives as well as labor laws that protect women in industry from compulsory overtime and from lifting certain amounts of weight. It would deny federal funding to single-sex women's colleges, prevent elderly widows from receiving Social Security benefits based on their late husband's earnings, and make it much more difficult for women to automatically receive alimony and child custody in divorce cases. Most importantly, Mrs. Schlafly argued, ERA would end women's exemption from the military draft. In the event of a draft, young women would be forced into combat in equal numbers with young men.
Mrs. Schlafly fought ERA because it took rights away from women. She is a strong defender of women's rights, including the special privileges certain laws grant them. It has been frequently asserted over the last several days that Mrs. Schlafly "tells women they should stay at home." Nothing could be further from the truth. On the contrary, Mrs. Schlafly encourages women to be politically active, as she has been throughout her career, which includes multiple books and two runs for Congress. She considers education to be an important goal for young women-she herself has a law degree, and her mother graduated from Washington University in 1920-and she is fully supportive of women who choose to have careers. Far from viewing women as "weak and emotional"-as Professor Dzubak suggested on KMOX radio on Wednesday morning-Mrs. Schlafly has argued throughout her career for women's mental and emotional strength, suggesting that their ability to manage home and family makes them even more resilient than men. As Mrs. Schlafly stated on KMOX on Wednesday, she "admire(s) the role of the full-time homemaker." If women wish to stay at home and give full attention to their children and their household, Mrs. Schlafly argues that they have a right to do so, and she strongly supports women who make this choice.
Her defense of women's rights aside, Mrs. Schlafly's intelligence and hard-working nature also make her a worthy example for students and graduates. She graduated Phi Beta Kappa from Washington University, earning a bachelor's degree in three years while simultaneously working 48 hours a week testing ammunition in a local factory. She went on to receive her master's from Harvard in a mere eight months. A Washington University political science professor at the time wrote that she "is the most capable woman student we have had in this department in ten years." In the midst of the time-consuming ERA fight, Mrs. Schlafly enrolled in Washington University School of Law, saying that she would study and attend classes in her "spare time." She graduated on time near the top of her class. Over the course of her career, she has written ten books, including an 800-page study of U.S. nuclear policy, on which she became an expert during the Cold War.
As a staunch defender of women's rights, a leader of a national political movement, and a successful, hard-working individual, Mrs. Schlafly is certainly someone "worthy of emulation." She deserves this honor and she deserves to be held in high regard by Washington University students.
Rachel is a freshman in the College of Arts & Sciences and can be reached via e-mail at rrwisdom@artsci.wustl.edu.
Viewing Comments 1 - 10 of 29
Erin
posted 5/08/08 @ 11:14 AM CST
Ah yes, because feminists actually want to force all women out of the home and in to careers. Without Phyllis Schlafly, we ladies wouldn't be allowed to be stay-at-home moms. (Continued…)
Paula
posted 5/08/08 @ 12:27 PM CST
How bizarre that this writer puts Phyllis on a pedestal with everything but a halo! This 'loaded-with-flattery' piece is so off the mark. Nice try, but she is portrayed very one-sided. (Continued…)
It's just creepy and unnecessary...
posted 5/08/08 @ 1:30 PM CST
...to check someone's Facebook profile in order to research information about them and then post it here. Seriously, it's way too much like all the crazy digging and "exposing" that goes on in politics, which I already find to be pretty unnecessary- but to do something similar to someone who's written an op-ed piece in a Student Newspaper? That's taking it too far. (Continued…)
Andrew_Lopez
AL
posted 5/08/08 @ 11:16 PM CST
Just read these quotes from Schlafly that one can easily find.
"By getting married, the woman has consented to sex, and I don't think you can call it rape. (Continued…)
Ariel
posted 5/09/08 @ 1:01 PM CST
Sure it's creepy and unnecessary to check facebook - but I can't claim to be surprised when almost every article prior to this cites FACEBOOK GROUPS as a representation of protest. (Continued…)
don tracy
posted 5/09/08 @ 5:33 PM CST
Dear Ms. Wisdom, are you aware that Ms. Schlafly opposes the teaching of evolution? and does that alter your position?
Margaret Stokely
posted 5/09/08 @ 7:04 PM CST
Where were the Protesters when Peter Singer was dishing out his poison. Killing babies up to the age of two. But Singer is polite. I guess friendly fascism has arrived. (Continued…)
Jerome Bauer
posted 5/09/08 @ 7:09 PM CST
For those of you not following the other threads, here is Rachel Wisdom's bibliographic letter, posted with her permission.
Dear Dr. Bauer,
Thank you for your message; I appreciate your interest. (Continued…)
S. Baum
posted 5/13/08 @ 3:59 AM CST
Thank you Rachel.
I think there are any number of good reasons for Wash U to recognize Ms. Schlafly with an honorary degree. She's a person of national prominence and influence, she's a favorite son of St. (Continued…)
SuzieQ
posted 5/13/08 @ 6:08 PM CST
Spin spin spin. She is saying that within a marriage sex is a given, and it is. Beyond physical force it is a 'he say she say' situation whether or not a rape occured. (Continued…)
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