Law and Gender Commons^™

Principle Originalism--The Third Way: A Jurisprudential Response To Dobbs V. Jackson Women's Health Organization, Ryan Fortson

American University Journal of Gender, Social Policy & the Law

All judges attempt to decide cases for reasons other than politics or their own personal opinions. But finding a consistent judicial methodology is fraught with peril. Against what it sees as the hyper-textualism of strict constructionism and the unfettered discretion of living constitutionalism, originalism posits itself as the only viable way to achieve an objectively neutral interpretation of the law. This is certainly the stance taken by the majority opinion in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, which claims that the Constitution is silent on abortion and that therefore no corresponding right to abortion exists. But there can be different …

Anti-Abortion Statutes As Religious Beliefs, Scott Devito

American University Journal of Gender, Social Policy & the Law

In Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, Justice Alito ruled there is no right, under the U.S. Constitution, for a woman to have an abortion. Since then, eleven states have either enacted or activated statutes that forbid the performance of an abortion. Others may soon follow suit. This Article does not attempt to dispute the reasoning of the Dobbs decision. Instead, it asks whether the eleven state statutes, now construed as constitutionally permitted, are, in fact impermissible intrusions into the constitutionally required separation of church and state. This Article approaches this problem from both a historical and philosophical perspective. First, …

Punishment And Prejudice: Reproductive Coercion In Immigration And Customs Enforcement Detention Centers, Inka Skłodowska Boehm

American University Journal of Gender, Social Policy & the Law

Introduction

Pauline Binam arrived in the United States from Cameroon as a toddler, with no notion of the dangers her new home had in store. At twenty-eight years old, Pauline found herself separated from her daughter and awaiting deportation in the Irwin County Detention Center in Ocilla, Georgia. Pauline consented to what she believed was a minor procedure after suffering from irregular menstrual bleeding, an ailment likely triggered by her two-year confinement. Unbeknownst to Pauline, the doctor removed one of her fallopian tubes, barring her ability to give birth to more children. A year later, Pauline came forward following a …

Civil Rights In The Workplace: It's Time To Cut The Excess And Get To The Truth, Hnin N. Khaing

American University Journal of Gender, Social Policy & the Law

On February 8, 1964, during the last few hours before the enactment of the Civil Rights Act, thanks to an individual described as a “racist, male octogenarian,” Congress haphazardly added “sex” as a prohibited basis for discrimination alongside race, color, religion, and national origin under Title VII1 of the Act. It was not until two decades later, in 1986, that the Supreme Court recognized sexual harassment as a form of sex discrimination under Title VII. Five years later, Anita Hill’s riveting public testimony, during the nomination hearings for Justice Clarence Thomas, ignited a nationwide discussion on sexual harassment. A quarter …

Denouncing The Revival Of Pre-Roe V. Wade Abortion Bans In A Post-Dobbs World Through The Void Ab Initio And Presumption Of Validity Doctrines, Nora Greene

American University Journal of Gender, Social Policy & the Law

The United States Supreme Court voted to overturn Roe v. Wade in a leaked draft of Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization. Written by Justice Alito and joined by four of the other conservative justices, the decision describes Roe as “egregiously wrong from the start” and blatantly overrules the landmark holding and its prodigy, Planned Parenthood v. Casey. In their state codes, nine states—Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas Michigan, Mississippi, Oklahoma, Texas, West Virginia, and Wisconsin— have unrepealed criminal abortion bans enacted before Roe. These bans prohibit abortion at any point in pregnancy unless to preserve the life of the pregnant person …

A Second Chance At Choice?: Challenging Abortion “Reversal” As Law And Medical Practice, Christen Hammock Jones

American University Journal of Gender, Social Policy & the Law

Introduction.

I felt like my soul was crying and pleading with the Lord on behalf of my baby’s life. I know God heard my prayer because Elizabeth called me back with the answer to my prayers: Patsy and Willie from the San Juan Diego center. I went to see Patsy the next morning at 7 am, less than 12 hours since I took the first pill. Of course, I was nervous, but I decided I had to trust the solution that God had provided me with. The morning I was scheduled to go and see Patsy, she called me and …

Stereotyping Evidence: The Civil Exception To The Federal Rape Shield Law And Its Embedded Sexual Stereotypes, Ramona Albin

American University Journal of Gender, Social Policy & the Law

No abstract provided.

Toxic Therapy: Examining The Constitutionality Of Conversion Therapy Bans In Light Of Otto, Kathleen Stoughton

American University Journal of Gender, Social Policy & the Law

No abstract provided.

To Shatter The Glass Ceiling, Clean The Sticky Floor And Thaw The Frozen Middle: How Discrimination And Bias In The Career Pipeline Perpetuates The Gender Pay Gap, Rachel Dibenedetto

American University Journal of Gender, Social Policy & the Law

I. INTRODUCTION

Women crack the glass ceiling, but rarely pierce the surface. When women do shatter the glass, they do so in small strides, achieving minor victories. This glass, an invisible discriminatory barrier, the cultural predispositions filled with gender bias, inhibits women from career advancement from reaching the ceiling. Many refused to recognize this often unspoken phenomenon until the United States Department of Labor called for action. In enacting anti-discrimination legislation and bridging the gender education gap, women made remarkable headways in overcoming hurdles, yet the roots of the challenge still remain. How can women shatter the glass ceiling if …

My Body Is Note My Choice Anymore? How Conscience Protections For Doctors Violate An Individual’S Right To Use Contraceptives And The Establishment Clause, Wanying Yang

American University Journal of Gender, Social Policy & the Law

Introduction

After a month of waiting, Evann finally met her gynecologist for a consultation on her first intrauterine device (IUD). However, before Evann told the gynecologist her request and symptoms, the gynecologist emphasized she was in a Catholic hospital and that they only prescribe oral contraceptives to patients with heavy cramping. The gynecologist then passed Evann an unofficial paper with an IUD provider’s number and expressed sorrow regarding Evann’s decision to use contraceptives. Evann walked out of the hospital without any information on the IUD, but instead with frustration and shame.

A Labor Of Love: Finding Justice For Victims Of Workplace Sexual Harassment Excluded From Title Vii, Abigail M. Whitmore

American University Journal of Gender, Social Policy & the Law

I. Introduction

“Sexual harassment perpetuates the interlocked structure by which women have been kept sexually in thrall to men and at the bottom of the labor market. Two forces of American society converge: men’s control over women’s sexuality and capital’s control over employees’ work lives.”

I first began working with children as a college student in a part-time daycare position and eventually moved into a full-time nanny position after graduating. Working as a nanny was the perfect option for me at the time, as I was seeking temporary work in between my undergraduate education and law school. The opportunity also …

The #Metoo Movement In Comparative Perspective, Dr. Joanne Sweeny

American University Journal of Gender, Social Policy & the Law

Introduction.

The #MeToo movement is one of the most far-reaching social media movements in history and its impact can still be felt years later. As the hashtag in the name suggests, the #MeToo movement gained the bulk of its momentum on Twitter but the movement’s actual origins began on MySpace in 2006. Tarana Burke, a long-time activist, founded the nonprofit organization Just Be Inc., which serves survivors of sexual assault and harassment. Burke came up with the concept of “me too” in 1997 when she was counseling a 13-year-old survivor of sexual abuse at a youth camp. Burke states that …

Onlyemployees: Ending The Misclassification Of Digital Sex Workers In The Shared And Gig Economy, Mary Marston

American University Journal of Gender, Social Policy & the Law

I. Introduction

Mia Khalifa was only paid a total of $12,000 in shooting fees during her ten-month career in the adult film industry, but she remains one of the most searched adult film stars of all time. Social and monetary discrepancies between adult film stars’ payment and the revenue made by pornography studios parallel the difficulties other sex workers face, like exotic dancers and prostitutes, especially in terms of their misclassification as independent contractors instead of employees.

In addition to this misclassification, sex workers face a lack of financial and physical protections in traditional sex work. These lack of protections, …

Slavery-Like Conditions And Abuse Of Positions Of Vulnerability: Why The United States Should Judge Countries' Efforts To Combat Human Trafficking Based On The Palermo Protocol And Consider The Effects Of Legalized Prostitution On Human Trafficking, Danica Baird

American University Journal of Gender, Social Policy & the Law

No abstract provided.

Prospects And Pitfalls: Confronting Sexual Harassment In The Legal Cannabis Industry, Alexis N. Smith, Griffon Toronjo Pivateau

American University Journal of Gender, Social Policy & the Law

I. Introduction

In the last decade, the legal cannabis industry emerged as a fast-growing and complex new market. Legal cultivation of the cannabis plant promises to create tremendous economic opportunities. Further, the new market hints at significant social consequences. Numerous women have entered the field as entrepreneurs, advocates, and employees. Early reports indicate a much higher percentage of women within the cannabis industry than the agricultural industry in general.

Nevertheless, women face challenges and obstacles. The cannabis industry bears the characteristics of a start-up entity, but this entity resides within a market skewed by the federal law banning the cultivation …

Porn Wars: Serious Value, Social Harm, And The Burdens Of Modern Obscenity Doctrine, P. Brooks Fuller, Kyla P. Garrett Wagner, Farnosh Mazandarani

American University Journal of Gender, Social Policy & the Law

During the 1980s, anti-pornography ideologues—an unlikely alliance of feminist activists and right-wing evangelical Christians—waged an open war against pornography and the anti-censorship feminists who supported legal protection for pornographic works. Following a pivotal defeat of an anti-pornography ordinance in federal court, the ideologies constituted in the so-called “Porn Wars” continued to guide obscenity doctrine. These ideologies have informed lower courts’ understanding of the harms and values associated with sexually explicit content more than constitutional scholars recognize, at least explicitly. Although courts recognize core feminist values such as sexual autonomy and privacy in sexually explicit content, they have built doctrine that …

Human Trafficking Victims' Need For Vacatur: Demolishing Roadblocks To Freedom: An Analysis Of The Current State Laws In The United States, The Current Federal Landscape, And A Call For The United Nations To Amend An Existing Protocol To Allow Victims Of Human Trafficking To Vacate Their Criminal Records, Melissa Owens

American University Journal of Gender, Social Policy & the Law

No abstract provided.

Closeted Or Credible: How Misinterpretation Of The Real Id Act Prevents Closeted Lgbtq+ Applicants From Establishing Credible Asylum Claims, Mary Kate O'Connell

American University Journal of Gender, Social Policy & the Law

No abstract provided.

The Georgia Life Act: Limiting Women's State Constitutional Right To Privacy, Phoebe Varunok

American University Journal of Gender, Social Policy & the Law

No abstract provided.

The Intersection Between Disability And Lgbt Discrimination And Marginalization, Victoria M. Rodríguez-Roldán

American University Journal of Gender, Social Policy & the Law

No abstract provided.

Sexual Contact Between A Suspect And Police Officers: How Far Should Police Go To Prove Prostitution?, Paula Del Valle Torres

American University Journal of Gender, Social Policy & the Law

No abstract provided.

The Future (Public Company Boardroom) Is Female: From California Sb 826 To A Gender Diversity Listing Standard, Sunitha Malepati

American University Journal of Gender, Social Policy & the Law

Introduction

The issue of board diversity has received an unusual amount of attention in recent years as corporations face an increasing amount of pressure to add more women to their boards. In 2017, State Street Corporation, the world’s third-largest asset manager, made headlines when it announced its board gender diversity campaign by placing a statue of the Fearless Girl staring down the Charging Bull of Wall Street in New York City’s Financial District. At the beginning of 2020, Goldman Sachs announced that it would require companies it helps take public to have at least one diverse board member, with a …

There Isn't Any Dumpster, Jill C. Engle

American University Journal of Gender, Social Policy & the Law

No abstract provided.

Examining The Model Rules Of Professional Conduct To Include Women's Moral Experience And Feminist Ethics, Anietie Akpan

American University Journal of Gender, Social Policy & the Law

No abstract provided.

Overcoming Institutional And Legal Barriers That Prevent Abused Females From Accessing Justice In Fragile Nigerian Regions, Valentina Okaru-Bisant

American University Journal of Gender, Social Policy & the Law

No abstract provided.

Following The Fifth Circuit: Title Vii As The Sole Remedy For Employment Discrimination On The Basis Of Sex In Educational Institutions Receiving Federal Funds, Alicia Martinez

American University Journal of Gender, Social Policy & the Law

No abstract provided.

Mitigating The "Lgbt Disconnect": Title Ix's Protection Of Transgender Students, Birth Certificate Correction Statutes, And The Transformative Potential Of Connecting The Two, Kyle Velte

American University Journal of Gender, Social Policy & the Law

No abstract provided.

God Is A Woman: Feminism As A Religion Protected Under The Free Exercise Clause Of The First Amendment, Lalita Moskowitz

American University Journal of Gender, Social Policy & the Law

No abstract provided.

President Trump's Crusade Against The Transgender Community, Brendan Williams

American University Journal of Gender, Social Policy & the Law

No abstract provided.

Mitigating The "Lgbt Disconnect": Title Ix's Protection Of Transgender Students, Birth Certificate Correction Statutes, And The Transformative Potential Of Connecting The Two, Kyle Velte

American University Journal of Gender, Social Policy & the Law

No abstract provided.