Law Commons^™

The French Veil Ban: A Transnational Legal Feminist Approach, Sital Kalantry

Cornell Law Faculty Publications

After the gruesome terrorist attack that killed eighty-four people in Nice, many beach towns in France began to ban Muslim women from wearing the "burkini" on beaches. The burkini, which was created by an Australian designer, is modest swimwear that covers the body and hair. The Nice attack occurred on the heels of a series of attacks in France. The timing of the French burkini ban suggests it was targeting Muslims due to the anger over the attacks. The argument that burkinis are not hygienic is a fig leaf for other more pernicious justifications. Others argue that religious garb generally …

If It Walks Like Systematic Exclusion And Quacks Like Systematic Exclusion: Follow-Up On Removal Of Women And African-Americans In Jury Selection In South Carolina Capital Cases, 1997-2014, Ann M. Eisenberg, Amelia Courtney Hritz, Caisa Elizabeth Royer, John H. Blume

Cornell Law Faculty Publications

This Article builds on an earlier study analyzing bases and rates of removal of women and African-American jurors in a set of South Carolina capital cases decided between 1997 and 2012. We examine and assess additional data from new perspectives in order to establish a more robust, statistically strengthened response to the original research question: whether, and if so, why, prospective women and African-American jurors were disproportionately removed in different stages of jury selection in a set of South Carolina capital cases.

The study and the article it builds on add to decades of empirical research exploring the impacts (or …

Recovering Socialism For Feminist Legal Theory In The 21 St Century, Cynthia Grant Bowman

Cornell Law Faculty Publications

This Article argues that a significant strand of feminist theory in the 1970s and 1980s — socialist feminism — has largely been ignored by feminist jurisprudence in the United States and explores potential contributions to legal theory of recapturing the insights of socialist feminism. It describes both the context out of which that theory grew, in the civil rights, anti-war, and anti-imperialist struggles of the 1960s, and the contents of the theory as developed in the writings of certain authors such as Heidi Hartmann, Zillah Eisenstein, and Iris Young, as well as their predecessors in the U.K., and in the …

Sex-Selective Abortion Bans: Anti-Immigration Or Anti-Abortion?, Sital Kalantry

Cornell Law Faculty Publications

In the last five years, over half of the state legislatures in the United States have considered banning sex-selective abortion because of the (false) belief that Asian Americans are disproportionately giving birth to more boys than are European Americans. Supported by the data that applies to a very small subset of Asian Americans, proponents of the law stereotype Asian Americans by assuming that their birthing patterns are the same as those of people in India and China.

Because of the undue focus on Asian immigrants in the discussions of sex selection bans, the real conversation that should occur in the …

Replacing Myths With Facts: Sex-Selective Abortion Laws In The United States, Brian Citro, Jeff Gilson, Sital Kalantry, Kelsey Stricker, University Of Chicago Law School. International Human Rights Clinic, National Asian Pacific American Women's Forum (U.S.), Advancing New Standards In Reproductive Health (Organization)

Cornell Law Faculty Publications

Several countries in the world have sex ratios at birth that are as high or higher than China and India, including countries with predominantly white populations. Nonetheless, immigrant communities in the United States from China and India are consistently accused of harboring a preference for sons. It is supposedly this preference for sons that leads Asian Americans to abort female fetuses. In response, eight states have enacted bans on sex-selective abortion and 21 states and the United States Congress have considered such bans.

Proponents of sex-selective abortion bans claim that the United States is one of the few countries in …

Victim Gender And The Death Penalty, Caisa Elizabeth Royer, Amelia Courtney Hritz, Valerie P. Hans, Theodore Eisenberg, Martin T. Wells, John H. Blume, Sheri Lynn Johnson

Cornell Law Faculty Publications

Previous research suggests that cases involving female victims are more likely to result in death sentences. The current study examines possible reasons for this relationship using capital punishment data from the state of Delaware. Death was sought much more for murders of either male or female white victims compared to murders of black male victims. Analyzing capital sentencing hearings in Delaware from 1977-2007 decided by judges or juries, we found that both characteristics of the victims and characteristics of the murders differentiated male and female victim cases. The presence of sexual victimization, the method of killing, the relationship between the …

Religious Exceptionalism And Human Rights, Laura S. Underkuffler

Cornell Law Faculty Publications

The liberal-democratic governmental compact assures that citizenship, political power, and civic participation in all of its forms will be afforded to all citizens on an equal basis. In particular, simple identity—as a presumptive matter—cannot be the basis for the denial of human rights. It is on this simple yet elegant principle that all civil-rights laws are founded.

Freedom of religion presents a particularly complex problem in this context. On the one hand, it is—itself—a universally recognized member of the human rights family, and is protected under civil-rights laws. On the other hand, it is— because of its possible invocation by …

Sex-Selective Abortion Bans Are Not Associated With Changes In Sex Ratios At Birth Among Asian Populations In Illinois And Pennsylvania, Arindam Nandi, Sital Kalantry, Brian Citro

Cornell Law Faculty Publications

Legal prohibitions on sex-selective abortions are proliferating in the United States. Eight state legislatures have banned abortions sought on the basis of the sex of the fetus, 21 states have considered such laws since 2009, and a similar bill is pending in U.S. Congress. These laws have been introduced and enacted without any empirical data about their impact or effectiveness. Prior studies of U.S. Census data found sex ratios among foreign-born Chinese, Korean and Indian immigrants were skewed in favor of boys, but only in families where there were already one or two girls. Using the variation in the timing …

Sex Selection In The United States And India: A Contextualist Feminist Approach, Sital Kalantry

Cornell Law Faculty Publications

Seven states in the United States have passed sex selection abortion bans, bills are pending in several other states, and a bill has been reintroduced in the U.S. Congress. In analyzing state legislative hearings, this article documents how the wide-spread practice of sex selection in other countries, particularly India and China, is being used by anti-abortion groups as a way to restrict women's right to autonomy in the United States. The dominant feminist paradigm in the United States takes a universal position on sex selection bans - these bans contravene women's right to autonomy and should not be permitted in …

Law And The Creation Of Meaning: A Brief Reflection On The Work Of Jane Larson, Gerald Torres

Cornell Law Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Women In Robes, Sital Kalantry

Cornell Law Faculty Publications

This article presents statistics on the number of women in the judiciary and argues for gender parity to further equality, enhance courts' legitimacy, and strengthen the rule of law.

From Multiculturalism To Technique: Feminism, Culture, And The Conflict Of Laws Style, Karen Knop, Ralf Michaels, Annelise Riles

Cornell Law Faculty Publications

The German Chancellor, the French President, and the British Prime Minister have each grabbed world headlines with pronouncements that their states' policies of multiculturalism have failed. As so often, domestic debates about multiculturalism, as well as foreign policy debates about human rights in non- Western countries, revolve around the treatment of women. Yet feminists are no longer even certain how to frame, let alone resolve, the issues raised by veiling, polygamy, and other cultural practices oppressive to women by Western standards. Feminism has become perplexed by the very concept of "culture." This impasse is detrimental both to women's equality and …

African Customary Law, Customs, And Women's Rights, Muna Ndulo

Cornell Law Faculty Publications

The sources of law in most African countries are customary law, the common law and legislation both colonial and post-independence. In a typical African country, the great majority of the people conduct their personal activities in accordance with and subject to customary law. Customary law has great impact in the area of personal law in regard to matters such as marriage, inheritance and traditional authority, and because it developed in an era dominated by patriarchy some of its norms conflict with human rights norms guaranteeing equality between men and women. While recognizing the role of legislation in reform, it is …

Sex Lex: Creating A Discourse, Gerald Torres

Cornell Law Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

To Whom Do We Refer When We Speak Of Obligations To "Future Generations"? Reproductive Rights And The Intergenerational Community, Sherry F. Colb

Cornell Law Faculty Publications

This Article argues that an analysis of reproductive rights in the context of future generations yields three insights. First, potential people (who may or may not come into being) do not-by any prevailing approach to morality-have a right to be created by us. They may therefore be ethically "prevented" from coming into existence with what I call the "Offspring Selection Interest" ("OSI"). Second, the OSI is often conflated with the distinct reproductive rights interest in protecting one's body against unwanted intrusion, the "Bodily Integrity Interest" ("BII"), with resulting confusion for reproductive rights discourse. And third, once we distinguish the OSI …

Women In The Legal Profession From The 1920s To The 1970s: What Can We Learn From Their Experience About Law And Social Change?, Cynthia Grant Bowman

Cornell Law Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Untold Truths: The Exclusion Of Enforced Sterilizations From The Peruvian Truth Commission's Final Report, Jocelyn E. Getgen

Cornell Law Faculty Publications

This Article argues that the exclusion of enforced sterilization cases from the Peruvian Truth Commission's investigation and Final Report effectively erases State responsibility and decreases the likelihood for justice and reparations for women victims-survivors of State-sponsored violence in Peru. In a context of deep cultural and economic divides and violent conflict, this Article recounts how the State's Family Planning Program violated Peruvian women's reproductive rights by sterilizing low-income, indigenous Quechua-speaking women without informed consent. This Article argues that these systematic reproductive injustices constitute an act of genocide, proposes an independent inquiry, and advocates for a more inclusive investigation and final …

The United Nations Responses To The Sexual Abuse And Exploitation Of Women And Girls By Peacekeepers During Peacekeeping Missions, Muna Ndulo

Cornell Law Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Untold Truths: The Exclusion Of Enforced Sterilizations From The Peruvian Truth Commission's Final Report, Jocelyn E. Getgen

Cornell Law Faculty Publications

This Article argues that the exclusion of enforced sterilization cases from the Peruvian Truth Commission's investigation and Final Report effectively erases State responsibility and decreases the likelihood for justice and reparations for women victims-survivors of State sponsored violence in Peru. In a context of deep cultural and economic divides and violent conflict, this Article recounts how the State's Family Planning Program violated Peruvian women's reproductive rights by sterilizing low-income, indigenous Quechua-speaking women without informed consent. This Article argues that these systematic reproductive injustices constitute an act of genocide, proposes an independent inquiry, and advocates for a more inclusive investigation and …

Reproductive Injustice: An Analysis Of Nicaragua's Complete Abortion Ban, Jocelyn E. Getgen

Cornell Law Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Race And Gender In The Law Review, Cynthia Grant Bowman

Cornell Law Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

The Conviction Of Andrea Yates: A Narrative Of Denial, Sherry F. Colb

Cornell Law Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Theories Of Domestic Violence In The African Context, Cynthia Grant Bowman

Cornell Law Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Rights Inside Out: The Case Of The Women's Human Rights Campaign, Annelise Riles

Cornell Law Faculty Publications

This essay traces the relationship between activists and academics involved in the campaign for “women’s rights as human rights” as a case study of the relationship between different classes of what I call “knowledge professionals” self-consciously acting in a transnational domain. The puzzle that animates this essay is the following: how was it that at the very moment at which a critique of “rights” and a reimagination of rights as “rights talk” proved to be such fertile ground for academic scholarship did the same “rights” prove to be an equally fertile ground for activist networking and lobbying activities? The paper …

Wife Murder In Chicago: 1910-1930, Cynthia Grant Bowman, Ben Altman

Cornell Law Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

David Peterson Mar, What Trouble I Have Seen: A History Of Violence Against Wives, Cynthia Grant Bowman

Cornell Law Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Legal Limbo Of The Student Intern: The Responsibility Of Colleges And Universities To Protect Student Interns Against Sexual Harassment, Cynthia Grant Bowman, Marybeth Lipp

Cornell Law Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Praxis And Pedagogy: Domestic Violence, Cynthia Grant Bowman, Eden Kusmiersky

Cornell Law Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Feminist Legal Theory, Feminist Lawmaking, And The Legal Profession, Cynthia Grant Bowman, Elizabeth M. Schneider

Cornell Law Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

The Limits Of Feminism, Emily Sherwin

Cornell Law Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.