Phyllis Schlafly
Phyllis SchlaflyReuters

Conservative icon and constitutional attorney Phyllis Schlafly passed away Monday at the age of 92.

A life-long Republican, Schlafly was perhaps best known for her vocal opposition to the radical feminism of the 1960s and 1970s and the failed Equal Rights Amendment.

Schlafly was instrumental in the late 1970s in pressing the Republican Party, which had previously endorsed the ERA, to include opposition to the amendment in its platform.

Her influence in the Republican Party fundamentally reshaped the American conservative movement in the 1960s and 1970s and set the stage for the Reagan Revolution of the 1980s, laying the groundwork for the social conservatism that became a prominent feature within the GOP.

“[S]he essentially launched the pro-family, pro-life movement,” said Focus on the Family chairman James Dobson.

In 1964, Schlafly wrote the best-selling book A Choice, Not an Echo, endorsing Arizona Senator Barry Goldwater’s presidential bid against primary challenger progressive Republican Nelson Rockefeller.

Eight years later, Schlafly founded the Eagle Forum, a political action committee committed to traditional family values. Schlafly led the organization for four decades.

In 2015, Schlafly endorsed real estate mogul Donald Trump in his bid for the GOP nomination. Her final book, The Conservative Case for Trump, was released on Tuesday, just one day after her passing.

An ardent opponent of abortion and gay marriage, Schlafly was dubbed by her opponents “the first lady of anti-feminism”, earning the wrath of many radical feminist organizations including the National Organization for Women (NOW). Former NOW President Betty Friedan once mused that she would “like to burn [Schlafly] at the stake.”

Bill Kristol, editor of the conservative Weekly Standard, eulogized Schlafly as “A woman of valor, a formidable friend and adversary, and American patriot.”