Law Commons^™

The Thirteenth Amendment And Equal Protection: A Structural Interpretation To "Free" The Amendment, Larry J. Pittman

William & Mary Journal of Race, Gender, and Social Justice

The hope is that the Court will one day hold that the Thirteenth Amendment has its own equal protection clause or component and that strict scrutiny will not be used for benign racial classifications designed to eradicate current badges and incidents of slavery. This Article critiques the Court’s decision in the Civil Rights Cases regarding the scope of section 1 of the Amendment and it offers a holistic or structural interpretation of the Amendment to include an equal protection component and a lesser standard of review than strict scrutiny. Essentially, the Thirteenth Amendment, if properly used, could become a public …

"De-Americanization" During The Trump Administration: Derivative Citizenship And Deceased Parents In The United States, Katheryn J. Maldonado

William & Mary Journal of Race, Gender, and Social Justice

The Trump Administration’s war on immigration will be marked in history as one replete with white supremacy and terror. Much attention has been focused in the realm of undocumented immigrants, detention centers, and family separations because of the pervasiveness of those issues and the gravity of the human rights violations occurring in the United States. However, little focus has been given to immigrants who are lawful permanent residents or naturalized citizens at risk of denaturalization and deprivation of their constitutional rights. This Note highlights the effects of the Trump Administration’s war on immigration on citizens and green card holders in …

The Forgotten Relatives In The Fight Against Family Separation: A Constitutional Analysis Of The Statutory Definition Of Unaccompanied Minors In Immigration Detention, Alysa Williams

William & Mary Journal of Race, Gender, and Social Justice

No abstract provided.

There's Nothing Rational About It: Heightened Scrutiny For Sexual Orientation Is Long Overdue, Daniel J. Galvin Jr.

William & Mary Journal of Race, Gender, and Social Justice

In this Article, I argue that sexual orientation meets the burden established by Supreme Court jurisprudence for suspect classification and, therefore, should receive heightened scrutiny under Fourteenth Amendment equal protection analysis. After decades of using the fundamental rights analysis to aid lesbian, gay, and bisexual individuals in their pursuit of equality, addressing the fundamental right to marry and the fundamental right to privacy, the Supreme Court must address the elephant in the courtroom: that sexual orientation meets all of the factors set by the Court in equal protection cases for suspect classification.

Gays, lesbians, and bisexual individuals (LGBs) meet the …

Has The Future Already Been Forgotten? A Post-2007 Transgender Legal History Told Through The Eyes Of The Late, (Rarely) Great Employment Non-Discrimination Act, Katrina C. Rose

William & Mary Journal of Race, Gender, and Social Justice

No abstract provided.

Same-Sex Parents And Their Children: Brazilian Case Law And Insights From Psychoanalysis, Helena Campos Refosco, Martha Maria Guida Fernandes

William & Mary Journal of Race, Gender, and Social Justice

This Article argues that maternal and paternal functions can be performed by same-sex parents from a psychological point of view. Consequently, the legal recognition of their relationship with their children meets the principle of human dignity pursuant to the Brazilian Federal Constitution.

Procedurally Criminal: How Peremptory Challenges Create Unfair And Unrepresentative Single-Gender Juries, Chelsea V. King

William & Mary Journal of Race, Gender, and Social Justice

No abstract provided.

The Gender Gap: A Persistent Problem That Congress Has Yet To Address, Leeron Avnery

William & Mary Journal of Race, Gender, and Social Justice

No abstract provided.

Rethinking Women And The Constitution: An Historical Argument For Recognizing Constitutional Flexibility With Regards To Women In The New Republic, Samantha Ricci

William & Mary Journal of Race, Gender, and Social Justice

No abstract provided.

Separate But Unequal - When Overcrowed: Sex Discrimination In Jail Early Release Policies, Lara Hoffman

William & Mary Journal of Race, Gender, and Social Justice

It is currently constitutional to house male and female prisoners in separate jail facilities based solely on gender. But is it also constitutional to provide separate early release policies to male and female prisoners convicted of the same crime, in the same county, and sentenced to the same length of time based solely on gender and separate housing arrangements? For decades, jail officials in many counties have released some prisoners before the end of their judicially mandated sentences to relieve overcrowding and meet budget constraints. A small study of jails around the country conducted as research for this Article reflects …

Lawrence As An Eighth Amendment Case: Sodomy And The Evolving Standards Of Decency, Sheldon Bernard Lyke

William & Mary Journal of Race, Gender, and Social Justice

This Article offers an alternate reading of Lawrence v. Texas, the 2003 U.S. Supreme Court case that struck down the Texas sodomy statute that criminalized private, consensual, and adult same-sex intercourse. While most scholars discuss Lawrence as a substantive due process case and struggle to find meaning in the ambiguity of the decision's language, I propose that Lawrence is better read as an Eighth Amendment case. This Article argues that the majority opinion analyzed the constitutionality of the Texas sodomy law as it would analyze the cruelty and unusualness of a criminal law in an Eighth Amendment evolving standards of …

"Fire Where There Is No Flame:" The Constitutionality Of Single-Sex Classrooms In The Commonwealth, Frances Elizabeth Burgin

William & Mary Journal of Race, Gender, and Social Justice

No abstract provided.

Equal Protection Misapplied: The Politics Of Gender And Legitimacy And The Denial Of Inheritance, Linda Kelly Hill

William & Mary Journal of Race, Gender, and Social Justice

No abstract provided.

The Paradox Of Unmarried Fathers And The Constitution: Biology "Plus" Defines Relationships; Biology Alone Safeguards The Public Fisc, Laura Oren

William & Mary Journal of Race, Gender, and Social Justice

No abstract provided.

A Nazi War Criminal As A Standard Bearer For Gender Equality? The Strange Saga Of Johann Breyer, Michael M. Pavlovich

William & Mary Journal of Race, Gender, and Social Justice

No abstract provided.

Autonomy, Gay Rights And Human Self-Fulfillment: An Argument For Modified Liberalism In Public Education, Vincent J. Samar

William & Mary Journal of Race, Gender, and Social Justice

No abstract provided.

A Tale Of Two Concurrences: Same-Sex Marriage And Products Liability, John G. Culhane

William & Mary Journal of Race, Gender, and Social Justice

No abstract provided.

Paving The Road: A Charles Hamilton Houston Approach To Securing Trans Rights, Jennifer Levi

William & Mary Journal of Race, Gender, and Social Justice

No abstract provided.

The Equal Rights Amendment: Why The Era Remains Legally Viable And Properly Before The States, Allison L. Held, Sheryl L. Herndon, Danielle M. Stager

William & Mary Journal of Race, Gender, and Social Justice

No abstract provided.