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Opposition to the feminist movement was fronted by Phyllis Schlafly and her STOP ERA campaign. Schlafly campaigned throughout the 1960s for women to maintain the conservative values seen before World War Two. She wanted women to reject the feminist movement and embrace the role of being a homemaker, where women had no involvement or limited involvement in the workplace.

Schlafly’s STOP ERA campaign was a response to the potential Equal Rights Amendment(ERA). This would have put an amendment into the US Constitution that gave women the same rights as men. Schlafly rejected the potential legal change for many reasons, such as:

• Women might be conscripted into the military.
• Women would be expected to financially contribute to families.
• The family unit would be undermined as women would be encouraged to go outside the home to work.
• By giving women equal rights with men, the ERA could devalue the status of women. According to Schlafly, they already had the privileged position of being looked after by men at home and in the workplace.

Schlafly campaigned by organising a STOP ERA group for each state. STOP ERA often used churches to promote its campaigns and raised funds to raise its public profile. Schlafly led the efforts, which were ultimately successful in stopping the ERA. On 30 June 1982, the ERA failed to become part of the US Constitution because it was supported by only 35 states, which was three states short of the required number.