Same-sex Marriage, Legal Mobilization, & the Politics of Rights

Same-sex Marriage, Legal Mobilization, & the Politics of Rights PDF Author: Martin Dupuis
Publisher: Peter Lang Incorporated, International Academic Publishers
ISBN:
Category : Law
Languages : en
Pages : 220

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Book Description
The civil rights of lesbians and gay men are a prominent issue on the public agenda today, and one of the most contentious debates is the recognition of same-sex relationships. Same-sex marriage is being addressed in legislatures and courts throughout the world. This book highlights the legal and political battles of same-sex marriages in the United States. In addition, a survey of the status of gay relationships in other countries is outlined in order to compare these claims for equal rights in various political and social contexts. The movement to recognize gay and lesbian relationships demonstrates that law and conceptions of rights are important political resources for creating social change.

Same-sex Marriage, Legal Mobilization, & the Politics of Rights

Same-sex Marriage, Legal Mobilization, & the Politics of Rights PDF Author: Martin Dupuis
Publisher: Peter Lang Incorporated, International Academic Publishers
ISBN:
Category : Law
Languages : en
Pages : 220

Get Book Here

Book Description
The civil rights of lesbians and gay men are a prominent issue on the public agenda today, and one of the most contentious debates is the recognition of same-sex relationships. Same-sex marriage is being addressed in legislatures and courts throughout the world. This book highlights the legal and political battles of same-sex marriages in the United States. In addition, a survey of the status of gay relationships in other countries is outlined in order to compare these claims for equal rights in various political and social contexts. The movement to recognize gay and lesbian relationships demonstrates that law and conceptions of rights are important political resources for creating social change.

The Limits to Union

The Limits to Union PDF Author: Jonathan Goldberg-Hiller
Publisher: University of Michigan Press
ISBN: 0472022741
Category : Law
Languages : en
Pages : 301

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Book Description
Revised and updated to include the most current information on same-sex marriage, The Limits to Union documents a legal struggle at its moment of greatest historical importance. "The Limits to Union is a superb book about the complexities of recent political struggles over same-sex marriage. Goldberg-Hiller offers a sophisticated account of egalitarian rights advocacy and the reaction it has generated from established majorities animated by a 'new common sense' of exclusionary sovereign authority. The author's analysis is multidimensional and nuanced, but the core argument is bold, important, and well-supported. I recommend it very highly to everyone interested in understanding the character, possibilities, and constraints of civil rights amid our contemporary culture wars." -Michael McCann, author of Rights at Work: Pay Equity Reform and the Politics of Legal Mobilization "In this excellent book, Goldberg-Hiller uses Hawaii's experience to examine the interaction between courts and the political system. . . . Relying on briefs, legislative statements, and interviews with activists from both sides of the question, he views this familiar debate . . . through the unfamiliar prism of gay marriage, which allows him to gauge the viability and the pliability of the American civil rights ideal, and how gay and lesbian issues fit (or don't fit) within that ideal." -Willian Heinzen, New York Law Journal "Goldberg-Hiller presents the history of the same-sex marriage question since it first sparked debate in Hawaii. He follows the shifting debate through court cases, state propositions, and state and federal legislatures, considering questions about the constitutionality of the Defense of Marriage Act and the concept of equal protection under the law for gays and lesbians. This detailed treatment of the legal issues surrounding same-sex marriages is highly recommended." -R. L. Abbott, University of Evansville "[A] valuable contribution to the field, situating the gay marriage debate in broader contexts of theory, law and practice. [S]ame-sex marriage is an important issue...that finds itself caught in the friction points of much larger debates over the nature of rights, the limits of sovereignty and the proper role of courts and law in a democratic society. The Limits to Union should therefore be of interest even to those who do not think of themselves as interested in gay and lesbian rights issues." -Evan Gerstmann, Loyola Marymount University, Law and Politics Book Review

The Politics of Same-Sex Marriage

The Politics of Same-Sex Marriage PDF Author: Craig A. Rimmerman
Publisher: University of Chicago Press
ISBN: 0226720020
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 403

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Book Description
Same-sex marriage emerged in 2004 as one of the hottest issues of the campaign season. But in a severe blow to gay rights advocates, all eleven states that had the issue on the ballot passed amendments banning the practice, and the subject soon dropped off the media’s radar. This pattern of waxing and waning in the public eye has characterized the debate over same-sex marriage since 1996 and the passing of the Defense of Marriage Act. Since then, court rulings and local legislatures have kept the issue alive in the political sphere, and conservatives and gay rights advocates have made the issue a key battlefield in the culture wars. The Politics of Same-Sex Marriage brings together an esteemed list of scholars to explore all facets of this heated issue, including the ideologies and strategies on both sides of the argument, the public’s response, the use of the issue in political campaigns, and how same-sex marriage fits into the broad context of policy cycles and windows of political opportunity. With comprehensive coverage from a variety of different approaches, this volume will be a vital sourcebook for activists, politicians, and scholars alike.

Out of the Closets and Into the Courts

Out of the Closets and Into the Courts PDF Author: Ellen Ann Andersen
Publisher: University of Michigan Press
ISBN: 0472031716
Category : Law
Languages : en
Pages : 313

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Book Description
Over the past 30 years, the gay rights movement has moved from the margins to the center of American politics, sparking debate from bedroom to boardroom to battlefield. Out of the Closets and into the Courts analyzes recent gay rights cases and explores the complex relationship between litigation and social change. “An excellent book, enlightening and well-written. Out of the Closets and into the Courts should be highly useful in the classroom and of interest to a broad audience.” --Evan Gerstmann, Loyola Marymount University “A detailed historical analysis of changes in the law surrounding gay and lesbian relationships, Out of the Closets and into the Courts also breaks fresh ground in thinking about how and when law can be used to affect social change. The concept of a legal opportunity structure, which complements the concept of political opportunity structure, proves to be very useful in analyzing judicial changes in the law. A very impressive analysis.” --Mayer Zald, Professor Emeritus, University of Michigan “Ellen Andersen's book integrates sophisticated sociolegal theory and thorough empirical research into a compelling, insightful analysis of legal mobilization campaigns led by the Lambda Legal Defense and Education Fund. This study makes a significant contribution to scholarship about struggles over gay rights in the U.S. and about legal reform politics in general.” --Michael McCann, University of Washington Ellen Ann Andersen is Assistant Professor of Political Science at Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis.

Same-Sex Marriage

Same-Sex Marriage PDF Author: Kathleen Hull
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 052185654X
Category : Law
Languages : en
Pages : 295

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Book Description
Kathleen Hull provides an exploration of the cultural practices around same-sex marriage, as well as the legal battle for recognition. She shows how couples use marriage-related cultural practices, such as public commitment rituals, to assert the realityof their commitments despite lack of legal recognition.

Global Perspectives on Same-Sex Marriage

Global Perspectives on Same-Sex Marriage PDF Author: Bronwyn Winter
Publisher: Springer
ISBN: 3319627643
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 252

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Book Description
This book provides a comparative, neo-institutionalist approach to the different factors impacting state adoption of—or refusal to adopt—same-sex marriage laws. The now twenty-one countries where lesbians and gay men can legally marry include recent or longstanding democracies, republics and parliamentary monarchies, and unitary and federal states. They all reflect different positions with respect to religion and the cultural foundations of the nation. Countries opposed to such legalization, and those having taken measures in recent years to legally reinforce the heterosexual fundaments of marriage, present a similar diversity. This diversity, in a globalized context where the idea of same-sex marriage has become integral to claims for LGBTI equality and indeed LGBTI human rights, gives rise to the following question: which factors contribute to institutionalizing same-sex marriage? The analytical framework used for exploring these factors in this book is neo-institutionalism. Through three neo-institutionalist lenses—historical, sociological and discursive—contributors investigate two aspects of the processes of adoption or opposition of equal recognition of same-sex partnerships. Firstly, they reveal how claims by LGBTIQ movements are being framed politically and brought to parliamentary politics. Secondly, they explore the ways in which same-sex marriage becomes institutionalized (or resisted) through legal and societal norms and practices. Although it adopts neo-institutionalism as its main theoretical framework, the book incorporates a broad range of perspectives, including scholarship on social movements, LGBTI rights, heterosexuality and social norms, and gender and politics.

A Time to Embrace

A Time to Embrace PDF Author: William Stacy Johnson
Publisher: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing
ISBN: 1467435996
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 391

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Book Description
In A Time to Embrace William Stacy Johnson brilliantly analyzes the religious, legal, and political debates about gay marriage, civil unions, and committed gay couples. This new edition includes updates that reflect the many changes in laws pertaining to civil unions / same-sex marriage since 2006.

Courts, Liberalism, and Rights

Courts, Liberalism, and Rights PDF Author: Jason Pierceson
Publisher: Temple University Press
ISBN: 9781592134021
Category : Law
Languages : en
Pages : 268

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Book Description
Understanding approaches to liberalism through the study of the politics of gay and lesbian rights.

Courthouse Democracy and Minority Rights

Courthouse Democracy and Minority Rights PDF Author: Robert J. Hume Ph.D.
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 0199982392
Category : Law
Languages : en
Pages : 230

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Book Description
In Courthouse Democracy and Minority Rights: Same-Sex Marriage in the States, Robert J. Hume examines how the democratization of state courts and state constitutional systems has influenced the capacity of judges to protect minority rights. Through an intensive examination of same-sex marriage policy, Hume shows that democratic innovations like judicial elections and initiative amendment procedures have conditioned the impact of judges on state marriage laws. Using a combination of original and publicly available data, Hume demonstrates that "courthouse democracy" has influenced the behavior of state judges, the reactions of the public to state court decisions, and the long-term policy consequences of these decisions, including the passage of state constitutional amendments. Hume concludes that judges will be capable of producing meaningful social change-and protecting minority rights-only when they have the institutional resources that they need to stand against popular opinion.

The Courts, the Ballot Box, and Gay Rights

The Courts, the Ballot Box, and Gay Rights PDF Author: Joseph Mello
Publisher: University Press of Kansas
ISBN: 0700622918
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 248

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Book Description
If the same-sex marriage debate tells us one thing, it’s that rights do not exist in a vacuum. What works for one side at the ballot box often fails in the courtroom. Conservative opponents of same-sex marriage used appeals to religious liberty and parental rights to win ballot measure campaigns, but could not duplicate this success in court. Looking at the same-sex marriage debate at the ballot box and in the courts, this timely book offers unique insights into one of the most fluid social and legal issues of our day—and into the role of institutional context in how rights are used. Why, Joseph Mello asks, did conservative opponents of same-sex marriage enjoy such an advantage when debating this issue in the popular arena of a ballot measure campaign? And why were they less successful at mobilizing the language of rights in the courts? His analysis shows us that rights don't just entitle us to resources; they also shape the way we see ourselves and are perceived by others. Thus, by using the language of rights to frame their cause, conservative opponents of same-sex marriage were able to construe themselves as victims of oppression, their religious and moral beliefs under threat. The same language, however, proved less useful, or even counterproductive, in courtrooms, Mello concludes, because the court's norms and constraints force arguments to undergo more searching scrutiny—and rights-based arguments against same-sex marriage contain discriminatory stereotypes that cannot be supported with evidence. In its analysis of the same-sex marriage issue, The Courts, the Ballot Box, and Gay Rights provides insights that illuminate some of the most salient rights-based issues of our time—including affirmative action, abortion, immigration, and drug policy. The book offers a new way of understanding how such issues are decided, and how important context can be in determining the outcome.