Karen Kedrowski, professor and director of the Carrie Chapman Catt Center, gave a lecture Thursday in the Memorial Union regarding how feminism and female rights are addressed in the United States Constitution.

The lecture, sponsored by the Carrie Chapman Catt Center for Women and Politics, the Political Science department and the Committee on Lectures, was titled “It’s Not Done: Women’s Constitutional Equality” and went through American history from first-wave feminism all the way to the present day.

Paola Martinez, a junior majoring in political science and an intern for the Carrie Chapman Catt Center for Women and Politics said in her opening statement that she once took a class taught by Kedrowski.

“Personally, I’ve had the honor to have professor Kedrowski, and it was completely by chance,” Martinez said. “She opened a whole new world of ideas for me… Overall she did inspire me.” 

Kedrowski gave an overview of how the U.S. Constitution has affected women throughout history.

“This is only relevant to male citizens,” Kedrowski said, regarding the Constitution. 

The majority of the lecture revolved around the Equal Rights Amendment which was originally passed by Congress in 1972. Kedroski referred to this amendment as “the zombie amendment” as it has been around for 50 years and is still in constant debate within the United States government. Americans have most recently seen this amendment in March 2023, when the cloture vote failed regarding the issue.

“I think really the most important question to take away is the understanding that the Constitution does not provide equal rights for women,” Kedrowski said. “It does not have a prohibition against sex discrimination.” 

There will be a discussion from noon to 12:45 p.m. Friday at Catt Hall regarding the lecture where students can talk over lunch. 

For more information regarding the Iowa State Lecture Series, go to their website.