We Rise: Phoenix and Tucson, Arizona

In Phoenix, a city named for the mythical bird that rises from its own ashes, that story feels especially alive. Here, rebirth isn’t legend — it’s landscape, history, and spirit. The sun burns hot, the ground cracks, and yet life returns, stronger, brighter, more determined than before.

As the Golden Flyer II rolled into Phoenix on May 30th, we couldn’t help but feel that same sense of renewal echoing through our journey. More than a century ago, suffragists Alice Burke and Nell Richardson crossed this very terrain facing heat, doubt, and resistance — yet they pressed forward, carrying a message the country wasn’t fully ready to hear. Like the phoenix, they refused to stay down. They rose, again and again.

Arizona knows something about that kind of persistence.

In the early 1970s, when the Equal Rights Amendment was moving through state legislatures across the country, a young state senator named Sandra Day O’Connor — long before she made history as the first woman on the U.S. Supreme Court — was already one of the earliest legislative champions of the ERA in Arizona. Her advocacy marked the beginning of a decades-long effort in this state, one defined by determination, setbacks, and renewed resolve.

Arizona debated ratification repeatedly during the original 1972–1982 window but fell short, as opposition hardened during the national ERA battle. Yet the effort never disappeared. Advocates returned again and again — in the 1980s, the 1990s, and into the 21st century — reintroducing measures, organizing coalitions, building public support. Like the city itself, the movement here has refused to stay buried.

On a bright sunny day, we were welcomed to Phoenix by seasoned activist and attorney, Dianne Post, who brought together new recruits and long-time members of NOW, Arizona LIST, the League of Women Voters and others in the ERA Task Force Arizona. Together, they have weathered many challenges from the early 1970’s when the ERA first passed Congress in 1972. “We planned to be the 38th state to ratify in 2020, but a handful of state legislators stood in the way. We will keep fighting for ratification – and we are determined to win,” Post told supporters.

Two of the leading ERA sponsors, Senator Lauren Kuby and Representative Quanta Crews pledged their unwavering support to work for Arizona ratification efforts.

“I am all in -- and we will never give up or give in – rather, we will win ratification here in Arizona, “ Senator Lauren Kuby predicted. “We only need a few more votes and this is an election year,” she added 

“Yes, there are women in the state legislature, but we also have women in the network, young women, mothers, seniors – some don’t have or need titles, they are committed to winning. I stand on the shoulders of those who came before me and together we will win,” Rep. Quanta Crews told the group.

Today, in every conversation, every signature, every story shared under the Arizona sun, we see the same fire — the same refusal to accept anything less than full equality that Sandra Day O’Connor carried into that state senate chamber more than fifty years ago.

Phoenix reminds us that progress has always been a cycle. There are moments when the flame dims, when it feels like everything has burned down. But the women of this city — and this country — have never stayed down.

We rise. And here in Phoenix, that rising feels not just possible — but inevitable.

As we left Phoenix, we knew that the desert has a way of telling stories— if you slow down long enough to listen. In Tucson, beneath a wide sky that has witnessed centuries of movement, resilience, and change, the Golden Flyer II rolled in carrying a story more than a hundred years old—and still unfinished.

The sun here doesn’t just shine—it reveals. It illuminates the past etched into adobe walls, the strength of communities that have endured, and the voices of women who have long fought to be seen and heard. As we arrived, it felt as though the desert itself was welcoming back a journey once taken by Alice Burke and Nell Richardson in 1916— two women who refused to wait for history to catch up to them.

But Tucson is not only a place that remembers—it is a place that leads. Across Arizona, and especially here, women have stepped forward to serve, shaping their communities not from the margins, but from the center of civic life. In Tucson, that leadership is visible at the very top, with Mayor Regina Romero and so many other women elected to office, carrying forward a legacy of public service that echoes the determination of those early suffragists.

That spirit came vividly to life at the YWCA of Southern Arizona, where we gathered with the Golden Flyer II. Speakers stood before an overflowing crowd, framed by a striking mural— bold, colorful, and unapologetic in its celebration of women’s strength and community. It was the perfect backdrop: a living piece of art that felt like a bridge between past and present, between the road traveled in 1916 and the road still ahead. As we shared the story of the original journey and invited new voices into the movement for equality, the mural seemed to echo what we know to be true—this work is not just history, it is happening now.

Kim Villanueva, NOW’s national president, presented Mayor Romero with an ERA Champions Award for helping to implement the U.S. Conference of Mayors ERA resolution. As mayor, she pledged her strong support for the community of feminists, immigrants, union members, LGBTQ+ people, and the full rainbow of ERA activists. And this mayor knows how to ensure intersectionality on issues with her programs on creating climate-resilient Tucson, supporting working families, including housing affordability, and firmly supporting reproductive justice.

“We are here to celebrate our past successes, honor those who have come before us, and at the same time support each other as we work for a future of equality and equal rights under the Constitution,” Mayor Romero said during a truly inspirational speech.

But one of the most impressive groups, in Arizona and across the country, is Arizona LIST – one of the state counterparts to EMILY’s List where Early Money Is Like Yeast – it Rises. From local leaders supported by Arizona List to national candidates backed by EMILY’s List, Arizona is building a pipeline of women leaders.

Catherine Nichols, the AZ LIST Executive Director, is leading the organization’s work to recruit, train, and support women candidates for office across Arizona and proved to be a true organizer from beginning to end for our visit. Hats off to the many women who made the Golden Flyer II return to the road a success.

And as we packed up and pointed the Golden Flyer west, the road stretched onward through the desert toward Yuma— another stop on a journey that continues to connect past to present, story to action, and community to community. If Tucson reminded us of the power of women’s leadership today, Yuma awaits as the next chapter—where new voices will join the chorus, and the call for equality will carry even farther across the American landscape.