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Difficulty: EasyPolitical Realignment, Watergate, and Rise of Conservatism

"The claim that the Equal Rights Amendment is needed to give women equal rights is a fraud. The truth is that American women already have status, rights, and privileges far superior to those of women in any other country in the world... The proposed amendment would deprive women of their legal right to be supported by their husbands, and it would force women into the military draft."
— Phyllis Schlafly, "What's Wrong with 'Equal Rights' for Women?," 1972

Based on the excerpt, the ideas expressed by Phyllis Schlafly most directly reflect the goals of which of the following groups during the 1970s?

  1. A
    Supporters of the New Deal who wanted to expand direct federal relief programs
  2. B
    Civil rights activists who advocated for a unified, nonviolent approach to integration
  3. A growing conservative movement concerned with preserving traditional gender rolesAnswer
  4. D
    Economists proposing supply-side policies to combat inflation and reduce federal spending

Answer

A growing conservative movement concerned with preserving traditional gender roles
The correct answer is correct because Phyllis Schlafly was a leading conservative activist who founded the STOP ERA campaign. Her arguments against the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) centered on defending traditional family structures and gender roles, which she believed were threatened by second-wave feminism. This opposition was a key component of the rising conservative movement of the 1970s.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Analyze the stimulus document for key arguments and historical context.
The stimulus shows Phyllis Schlafly criticizing the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) in 1972, arguing that it threatens traditional family structures, husbands' obligations, and exempting women from the draft.
Identifying the author, date, and main argument helps locate the question within the 1970s debates over gender roles.
2
Connect the document's argument to the broader political trends of the 1970s.
Schlafly's arguments against the ERA were central to mobilizing grassroots conservative opposition, forming the New Right coalition which championed social conservatism.
This links the specific text to the learning objective on the rise of conservatism.
3
Evaluate the choices to find the one that best matches this conservative mobilization.
The option referring to a growing conservative movement concerned with traditional gender roles directly describes Schlafly's group, while other options refer to different eras or unrelated policy initiatives.
To select the correct answer by matching the pedagogical intent of the source analysis.

Key Concept

The rise of social conservatism and the anti-ERA movement in the 1970s.
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Topics

Political Realignment, Watergate, and Rise of Conservatism

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