Art community expresses support for equal rights

Last month, you may have seen a giant lavender RV roaming the streets of our neighborhood donning colorful artwork, quotes and signatures from Americans across the south. 
 
Artists4ERA and Vote Equality partnered up with other nonpartisan groups like the League of Women Voters to activate and motivate voters to learn more about the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA). On the island, owner Staci Lantz of Imagine Home happily hosted one of the
RV’s dozens of stops across the south last month.  
 
Imagine Home is a luxury brand interior design shop located on Daniel Island and Kiawah. Hosting the bus resonated with Lantz because she represents “talented artisans producing stunning craft while struggling to earn sustainable wages” from the U.S. and all over the world, primarily women artisans. “Over 90 percent of the artisan works I carry are from women.” Eliminating the gender wage gap could be one key benefit of the ERA. The real benefit, which is the vision of the Vote Equality U.S. organization, is “to bring America one step closer to delivering on its promise of liberty and justice for all.” Lantz states it simply, “Equality means so much for women working. It’s a problem for all moms from DI to Africa. Women have to take care of the kids and struggle to earn a living wage. We need to be equally represented. Now more than ever!”
 
More than 165 countries around the world include gender equality in their constitutions. The U.S. does not. The ERA dates back over 100 years when, in 1921, an organization formed to fight for women’s right to vote, the National Women’s Party, believed the 19th Amendment would not be enough to guarantee women the same legal and equal protection under the Constitution. For decades, the ERA has garnered support and opposition along the way. What brings ERA back into the spotlight is the fact that in 2020 Virginia was the
38th state to ratify the ERA, making it the final state needed to enshrine the 28th Amendment (Equal Rights) into the U.S. Constitution. The wording of the amendment is only 24 words, “Equality of rights under the law shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex.” 
 
Daniel Island residents came to Imagine Home in support of the ERA during the two-hour tour stop led by mom and Vote Equality U.S. Director Kati Hornung. Hornung was excited to see the constant flow of supporters signing the bus and getting artist postcards to share with friends. The stop was one of several dozen in the 2022 southern tour including Florida, Georgia, South Carolina and North Carolina, all of which have not ratified the ERA. 
 
“You say DI and I think diversity and inclusion,” shared Hornung, constantly engaging passers-by. Undeterred by folks looking inquisitively but suspiciously at the enormous signature-covered RV, Hornung and her Virginia-based friend and activist Anna Bradley share “over 90% of Americans support constitutional gender equality.” 
 
One signature on the bus says it all: “Equality for all, ya’ll.”
 
Heather MacQueen Jones is a Daniel Island artist journaling life’s journey through oil painting.  Follow her stories on Instagram @heARTpalette or www.MacQueenJones.com
 

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