Samuels Yoelin Kantor LLP Partner Victoria Blachly Appointed to Board of Advisors for VoteERA.org

SYK partner Victoria Blachly has been appointed to the Board of Advisors for VoteERA.org, which is a bi-partisan effort to obtain an Oregon Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) that provides express equality and protects women against sex discrimination. VoteERA.org is currently collecting petition signatures and donations to get an amendment on Oregon’s ballot this November.
Because the Oregon Constitution was written in 1857, and ratified in 1859, it never prevented women from being discriminated against. Even though the Article I, Section 20 -page 5-says: “[n]o law shall be passed granting to any citizen or class of citizens privileges, or immunities, which, upon the same terms, shall not equally belong to all citizens,” women living at that time couldn’t vote, own property, or work the same number of hours as men. This same Article I, Section 20, originally written to provide equality, is still in the Constitution today.
Women in Oregon are currently protected with case law. However, case law, laws, and statutes can be overturned and interpreted by different judges. VoteERA.org Ballot Initiative Petition ID 34 would amend Article I by creating a new section (46), which provides that equality of rights under the law shall not be denied or abridged by the state or any political subdivision on account of sex.
Appointed the firm’s first female equity partner, Victoria is actively engaged with the local community. In March, she was appointed to the Governor’s Commission on Senior Services (GCSS). GCSS is dedicated to enhancing and protecting the quality of life for all older Oregonians. She has served on the boards for Dress for Success, Oregon Lawyers Against Hunger and Housecall Providers, the only nonprofit primary care medical practice in the Portland metropolitan area to provide in-home physician, PA and nurse practitioner services to homebound seniors and persons with disabilities.
If you’d like to learn more about VoteERA.org, please connect with Victoria at one of these upcoming events: