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Where's The Politics?: Introduction To Williams, Eastland, Days, And Rabkin, Neal Devins

Neal E. Devins

No abstract provided.

Lg Ms 027 Diane Elze Papers Finding Aid, Elizabeth Sistare, Nicholas Martin

Search the Manuscript Collection (Finding Aids)

Description:

A 1978 graduate of the University of Maine, Orono, Diane Elze began her volunteer career working for the YWCA Fair Harbor Shelter in Portland, Maine. She was an activist in the LGBT community in the Portland area in the 1980s and 1990s. Among other activities, she was a founding member of the Maine Lesbian Gay Political Alliance, worked on the AIDS Project, and founded the LGBT youth group, Outright. She also edited the newsletter Moving, The Newspaper of the Maine Association of Handicapped Persons and founded the statewide gay and lesbian newspaper, Our Paper. Elze earned a Master’s Degree …

Accommodating Vulnerability, Annette Ruth Appell

annette appell

Unlike other social categories, such as race, gender, sexual identity, and disability, the category of childhood has received little critical examination in the legal academy. Like other socio-legal categories with natural referents, however, childhood masks the contingency and normativity of behavior, expectations, power, and regulation, rendering the social order natural and inevitable. Childhood also scripts behavior and produces subordination and privilege in a manner unique to the adult–child dichotomy, but which also intersects with class, gender, race, sexuality, sexual identity, and ability. As such, the category bears examination not only for what it reveals about ourselves—adults, but also how to …

Legal Lines In Shifting Sand: Immigration Law And Human Rights In The Wake Of September 11, Daniel Kanstroom

Daniel Kanstroom

In March of 2004, a group of legal scholars gathered at Boston College Law School to examine the doctrinal implications of the events of September 11, 2001. They reconsidered the lines drawn between citizens and noncitizens, war and peace, the civil and criminal systems, as well as the U.S. territorial line. Participants responded to the proposition that certain entrenched historical matrices no longer adequately answer the complex questions raised in the “war on terror.” They examined the importance of government disclosure and the public’s right to know; the deportation system’s habeas corpus practices; racial profiling; the convergence of immigration and …

Integrating Minorities Through Legislation:A Perspective On China, Gulazat Tursun

gulazat tursun

No abstract provided.

Tradition As Justification: The Case Of Opposite-Sex Marriage, Kim Forde-Mazrui

Kim Forde-Mazrui

A central point of contention in the national debate over same-sex marriage is the importance of preserving tradition. That debate also features prominently in constitutional litigation over bans on same-sex marriage. Opponents of such bans argue that tradition is an illegitimate justification for them, while defenders of traditional marriage contend that tradition is not only a legitimate justification, it is sufficiently important to withstand heightened judicial scrutiny.

This article assesses tradition as a justification for laws challenged on equal protection grounds, with a focus on laws that limit marriage to different-sex couples. The article makes two main points. First, it …

"Polyamory As A Sexual Orientation", Ann E. Tweedy

Ann E. Tweedy

This article examines, from a theoretical standpoint, the possibility of expanding the definition of "sexual orientation" in employment discrimination statutes to include other disfavored sexual preferences, specifically polyamory. It first looks at the fact that the current definition of "sexual orientation" is very narrow, being limited to orientations based on the sex of those to whom one is attracted, and explores some of the conceptual and functional problems with the current definition. Next the article looks at the possibility of adding polyamory to current statutory definitions of sexual orientation, examining whether polyamory is a sufficiently embedded identity to be considered …

"Polyamory As A Sexual Orientation", Ann E. Tweedy

Ann E. Tweedy

This article examines the possibility of expanding the definition of “sexual orientation” in employment discrimination statutes to include other disfavored sexual preferences, specifically polyamory. It first looks at the fact that the current definition of “sexual orientation” is very narrow, being limited to orientations based on the sex of those to whom one is attracted, and explores some of the conceptual and functional problems with the current definition. Next the article looks at the possibility of adding polyamory to current statutory definitions of sexual orientation, examining whether polyamory is a sufficiently embedded identity to be considered a sexual orientation and …

Torch (May/June 2010), Brandon Baldwin, Civil Rights Team Project

Torch: The Civil Rights Team Project Newsletter

No abstract provided.

A Post-Racial Voting Rights Act, Jason Rathod (R-Z)

Jason Rathod (R-Z)

The Voting Rights Act of 1965 (VRA) was enacted “to foster our transformation to a society that is no longer fixated on race.” Georgia v. Ashcroft, 539 U.S. 461, 490 (2003). This article critiques the prevailing election law scholarship and jurisprudence as out of step with VRA’s post-racial aspirations and offers proposals for Congress to correct course. The United States has long been torn between civic nationalism and racial nationalism. By the mid-20th Century, the uneasy interplay of these visions had produced a remarkable expansion of citizenship to all migrants from Europe alongside appalling discrimination against, or outright exclusion of, …

Toward Universalism: What The Ada Amendments Act Of 2008 Can And Can't Do For Disability Rights, Kevin M. Barry

Kevin M Barry

The social model of disability teaches that it is society’s treatment of impairments, not the impairments themselves, which limit people. But this model permits two different approaches to civil rights coverage: protect only some (the “minority group” approach) and protect all (the “universal” approach). While some scholars suggest that the ADA’s protected class of people with “disabilities” constituted an abandonment of the universal approach to coverage, this Article argues that the ADA’s three-pronged definition of “disability” embodied a tension between the minority group approach (in its first and second prongs) and the universal approach (in its “regarded as” prong). Although …

Book Review Of Cause Lawyering For People With Disabilites, Michael Ashley Stein, Michael E. Waterstone, David B. Wilkins

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

And The Ban Plays On . . . For Now: Why Courts Must Consider Religion In Marriage Equality Cases, Matthew E. Feinberg

Matthew E Feinberg

The gay marriage ban: it is one of the most controversial issues in politics, in society, in religion, and in law today. In each venue, anything goes, everyone has an opinion, and the result is rarely consistent. The decisions may be different, but the claimants’ arguments are usually the same – banning same-sex marriage denies same-sex couples equal protection under the law.

The pink elephant in the marriage equality courtroom is religion, yet it is extremely rare for same-sex marriage bans to receive First Amendment religious rights-based inquiry. In 2009, the Supreme Court of Iowa changed all that. In its …

Gay Equality, Religious Liberty, And The First Amendment, Matthew J. Murray

Matthew Murray

Are gay rights laws and religious liberty fundamentally in conflict? Would legal recognition of same-sex marriage lead to a wave of litigation threatening the religious liberty of those who object to such unions on religious grounds? Opponents of same-sex marriage have vocally asserted as much. This Article argues, however, that modifications in civil marriage laws in fact pose little to no threat to the liberty of religious objectors. Rather, the real arena of potential conflict between religious liberty and gay equality arises in the context of sexual orientation nondiscrimination laws. But these tensions are not new. The courts should be …

“Argue, But Obey: ” Black Vietnam War Veterans Interpret American Exceptionalism, Robert N. Hall

Digitized Theses

This paper describes the experiences of African American soldiers during and after the Vietnam War, using personal statements drawn from oral histories, journals, and interviews to expose their interpretation of American exceptionalism as seen in both domestic and foreign policy. Participants in both the Vietnam War and the Civil Rights Movement, black veterans argued that racial nationalism (an ethno-racial view of foreign relations and American citizenship) superseded civic nationalism (the tendency toward individual liberty, and rooted in universal equality) during defining moments in the nation’s history, determining its foreign and domestic policies, and undermining the universal appeal of American principles. …

Torch (October 2008), Brandon Baldwin, Civil Rights Team Project

Torch: The Civil Rights Team Project Newsletter

No abstract provided.

Resisting Guantanamo: Rights At The Brink Of Dehumanization, Muneer I. Ahmad

Muneer I Ahmad

The Supreme Court’s June 2008 decision in Boumediene v. Bush, granting constitutional habeas corpus rights to terrorist suspects at Guantánamo Bay, appeared to usher in a rights moment in which legal advocacy achieved transformative results. But the history of rights-based litigation at Guantánamo suggests that such victories often are fleeting, with court pronouncements failing to produce the meaningful change—freedom of prisoners, closure of Guantánamo—expected of such landmark decisions. This reflects not simply a failure of the courts, but a limitation of rights in the face of extreme state violence. This Article argues that the work of rights—and of lawyers—at Guantánamo …

Bloodstains On A "Code Of Honor", Kenneth Lasson

Kenneth Lasson

Abstract In the real world of the Twenty-first Century, deep biases against women are prevalent in much of Muslim society. Although there is no explicit approval of honor killing in Islamic law (Sharia), its culture remains fundamentally patriarchal. As unfathomable as it is to Western minds, “honor killing” is a facet of traditional patriarchy, and its condonation can be traced largely to ancient tribal practices. Justifications for it can be found in the codes of Hammurabi and in the family law of the Roman Empire. Unfortunately, honor killings in the Twenty-first Century are not isolated incidents, nor can they be …

Focus On Batson: Let The Cameras Roll, Mimi Samuel

Mimi Samuel

While the Supreme Court outlawed discrimination in jury selection over 40 years ago, both empirical studies and candid interviews show that lawyers routinely rely on characteristics such as race, gender, and religion in striking prospective jurors. In large part, this practice continues because, when challenged, attorneys proffer non-verbal factors such as facial expressions, inattentiveness, eye contact (or lack thereof), or even laughing or coughing to justify their peremptory strikes. Without a way to assess the validity of these reasons, the trial judge and then the appellate court on review, have little ability to enforce the anti-discrimination prohibition set forth in …

Safeguarding Fundamental Rights: Judicial Incursion Into Legislative Authority, Alexander Tsesis

Alexander Tsesis

The Supreme Court recently limited Congress’s ability to pass civil rights statutes for the protection of fundamental rights. Decisions striking sections of the Violence Against Women Act and the Americans with Disabilities Act focused on states’ sovereign immunity. These holdings inadequately analyzed how the Reconstruction Amendments altered federalism by making the federal government primarily responsible for protecting civil rights. The Supreme Court also overlooked principles of liberty and equality lying at the foundation of American governance. The Court’s restrictions on legislative authority to identify fundamental rights and to safeguard them runs counter to the central credo of American governance that …

Coming Out For Kids: Recognizing, Respecting, And Representing Lgbtq Youth, Barbara A. Fedders

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Gender, Negotiating Gender And (Free And Equal) Citizenship: The Place Of Associations, Linda C. Mcclain

Fordham Law Review

No abstract provided.

Common Circle For Human Rights, Vol.4, No.5 (March-April 1999), M. Lichtman

Common Circle for Human Rights (1997-2000)

No abstract provided.

Common Circle For Human Rights, Vol.3, No.4 (October-December [1998]), M. Lichtman

Common Circle for Human Rights (1997-2000)

No abstract provided.

Common Circle For Human Rights, Vol.2, No.3 (August- September 1998), M. Lichtman

Common Circle for Human Rights (1997-2000)

No abstract provided.

Common Circle For Human Rights, Vol.1, No.8 (September 1997), M. Lichtman

Common Circle for Human Rights (1997-2000)

No abstract provided.

Common Circle For Human Rights, Vol.1, No.4 (May 1997), M. Lichtman

Common Circle for Human Rights (1997-2000)

No abstract provided.

Common Circle For Human Rights, Vol.1, No.3 (April 1997), M. Lichtman

Common Circle for Human Rights (1997-2000)

No abstract provided.

Common Circle For Human Rights, Vol.1, No.2 (March 1997), M. Lichtman

Common Circle for Human Rights (1997-2000)

No abstract provided.

Ethnicity And Prejudice: Reevaluating "National Origin" Discrimination Under Title Vii, Juan F. Perea

William & Mary Law Review

No abstract provided.