Question

shirley chisholm was a women’s rights and civil activist who was the first african american woman elected to congress. the following is from an address to the house of representatives regarding the equal rights amendment.

from address to congress

this is what it comes down to: artificial distinctions between persons must be wiped out of the law. legal discrimination between the sexes is, in almost every instance, founded on outmoded views of society and the prescientific beliefs about psychology and physiology. it is time to sweep away these relics of the past and our future generations free of them.

federal agencies and institutions responsible for the enforcement of equal opportunity laws need the authority of a constitutional amendment. the 1964 civil rights act and the 1963 equal pay act are not enough; they are limited in their coverage—for instance, one excludes teachers, and the other leaves out domestics, alive and professional women. the equal employment opportunity has not proven to be an adequate device, with its power limited to investigation, conciliation and recommendation to the justice department. in 101 cases involving sexual discrimination, it has failed in more than one-half. the justice department has been even less effective. it has intervened in only one case involving discrimination on the basis of sex, and this was on a federal postal point. in a second case, in which both sexual and racial discrimination were alleged, the racial bias charge was given far greater weight.

what is the author’s primary argument for why the equal rights amendment is necessary?

1. society’s understanding of psychology and physiology is outdated.
2. the justice department needs to expand its powers to be more effective.
3. the justice department investigates only cases based on racial discrimination.
4. current laws exclude many women from protections and are not strong enough.

Explanation:

To determine the author's primary argument for the Equal Rights Amendment, we analyze each option:

• Option 1: The passage says "outmoded views of society and the prescientific fallacies about psychology and physiology" are to be swept away, not that society's understanding of these fields is outdated. Eliminate 1.
• Option 2: The text states the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission "has not proven to be an adequate device, with its power limited", and the Justice Department's intervention was "even less effective", so it doesn't say the Justice Department needs expanded powers to be more effective. Eliminate 2.
• Option 3: The passage mentions the Justice Department intervened in a case with "both sexual and racial discrimination" and a "racial bias charge was given far greater weight", but it doesn't say the department only investigates racial discrimination cases. Eliminate 3.
• Option 4: The text says "the 1964 Civil Rights Act and the 1963 Equal Pay Act are not enough; they are limited in their coverage—for instance, one excludes teachers, and the other leaves out domestics, alive and professional women" and "federal agencies... need the authority of a Constitutional amendment", showing current laws exclude many women and are not strong enough. This matches.

Answer:

1. Current laws exclude many women from protections and are not strong enough.