MRA Guide To The CEDAW

Awww isn’t this sweet? Amnesty International has a little fact sheet for homophobe woman-haters on why they shouldn’t be afraid of CEDAW

Don’t worry! With The CEDAW:

1) Still lets the U.S. be above international law
2) The women you assault, stalk, harass won’t win any lawsuits they file against you, cuz after all you’re a ‘Murkan Man.
3) You can still wear the pants in your family, and you can still terrorize your own kids.
4) We won’t let the ladies kill their precious unborns – not if we have any say – we’re neutral, like Stupak.
5) It can be like Jim Crow for girls!
6) Gays still can’t marry. Your ass is safe.
7) You can still kill whores, and nobody will care.

So get on with the Ratifying already! What are ya waiting for! You got all your fine upstanding NGO’s in the field ready to “help” these women become good moral women who can’t wait to cook you dinner.

Read the rest:

CEDAW: MYTH vs. FACT

MYTH #1: U.S. ratification of CEDAW would give too much power to the international community with the provisions of the Convention superseding U.S. federal and state law.

FACT: Treaties adopted in the United States are not “self-executing.” This means that legislation to implement any treaty provision would come before the House and Senate in the same way any other bill does. As with many international agreements, countries can express “reservations, understandings and declarations” in cases where there are discrepancies between the international convention or treaty and domestic law. U.S. law generally complies with the requirements of CEDAW and the Treaty is compatible with the principles of the U.S. Constitution. Where any differences do exist, the Treaty calls on states to take appropriate measures to progressively promote the principle of nondiscrimination. Such language upholds US sovereignty and grants no enforcement authority to the United Nations.

MYTH #2: “Discrimination” is too broadly defined in CEDAW, and its implementation in the U.S. would result in unwise laws and “frivolous” lawsuits.

FACT: The treaty is not self-executing and would not authorize any lawsuit not already allowed under U.S. law. While implementation of CEDAW could raise U.S. legal standards, a flurry of frivolous lawsuits is unlikely. CEDAW’s definition of discrimination includes both discrimination that is intentional and that which is the result of laws, policies, and practices. When applied, these provisions have the impact (sometimes unintentionally) of discriminating against women. U.S. law already governs discrimination in public and private employment, prohibiting policies and practices that unintentionally burden women more than men. Regardless, claims in the U.S. related to sex discrimination are not subjected to the same “strict scrutiny” standards applied to claims of race discrimination. The implementation of CEDAW could help to rectify these discrepancies in U.S. law over time, but is unlikely to result in frivolous lawsuits any more than challenges to race discrimination.

MYTH #3: CEDAW will be used to destroy the traditional family structure in the U.S. by redefining “family” and the respective roles of men and women, or could be used to usurp the proper role of parents in child rearing.

FACT: CEDAW does not seek to regulate any constitutionally protected interests with respect to family life. Both CEDAW and the U.S. Constitution recognize the restraints of any governing authority to interfere with an individual’s most basic decisions regarding family. CEDAW simply urges State Parties “to adopt education and public information programs, which will eliminate prejudices and current practices that hinder the full operation of the principle of the social equality of women.” The treaty simply calls for the recognition of the “common responsibility of men and women in the upbringing and development of their children” and maintains “the parents’ common responsibility (is) to promote what is in the best interest of the child.”

MYTH #4: CEDAW supports abortion through its promotion of access to “family planning.”

FACT: CEDAW does not address the matter of abortion and, according to the U.S. State Department, is “abortion neutral.” Many countries in which abortion is illegal – such as Ireland, Burkina Faso, and Rwanda – have ratified the Convention.

MYTH #5: The treaty will threaten single-sex schools and require “gender-neutral” textbooks.

FACT: Single-sex schools are not prohibited. Educational equality language refers to the need for equal educational facilities, texts, and other materials for girls and boys, whether they are taught in single-sex or co-ed schools.

MYTH #6: U.S. ratification of CEDAW might be used to sanction same-sex marriages.

FACT: The CEDAW Treaty makes clear that it is not aimed at all sex-based discrimination, but only at discrimination that is directed specifically against women. A same-sex marriage claim would include a charge that both men and women who want to marry individuals of their own sex are being discriminated against. There is no provision in theTreaty that would compel the U.S. Congress to pass same-sex marriage laws in order to comply.

MYTH #7: The treaty will require legalization of prostitution.

FACT: The CEDAW Committee has called for the decriminalization of prostitution in specific countries such as China, where prostitution and trafficking in women and children are rampant, not for all countries in general. Regulation in those countries would allow victimized women to come forward without fear of repercussions, to seek treatment to prevent HIV/AIDS and other sexually transmitted infections, to obtain health care and education, and to combat trafficking and sex slavery.