Following is the essay I presented at the January ACS Conference at UCLA on the 40th anniversary of Roe v. Wade and the 10th anniversary of Lawrence v. Texas. The piece is now posted at UCLA Law Review Discourse, where you can also download it in pdf – We, the people, declare today that the [...]
Progressives are celebrating the string of four successes in marriage ballots last Tuesday, but if you dig deeper, the news is even better. In several key state governments, the level where many LGBT and women’s rights issues are determined, the sky got significantly bluer and/or conservative initiatives flopped. Drill down into all the analysis [...]
It’s been less than a week since Sandy (and the nightmare continues for many), but Tuesday night could be another wild ride. With the presidential election still close, and control of the Senate hanging in the balance, it’s going to be a bumpy night until all the results are in. For LGBT folks and allies, [...]
The Center for Ethics and Public Policy has announced a new project that will establish bipartisan “religious liberty” legislative caucuses in every state by the end of 2013, with the mission of blocking access to contraceptives, abortion and same-sex marriage. The campaign is starting with Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Idaho, Kansas, Missouri, New Hampshire, Oklahoma, and Tennessee. [...]
In a case we discussed last month, the Ninth Circuit has granted a preliminary injunction against Arizona House Bill 2036; this unconstitutional and potentially dangerous measure would curtail women’s reproductive rights at 20 weeks of pregnancy. On July 30th, US District Judge Teilborg upheld the law based on the problematic findings that (1) the few weeks [...]
Ruling en banc, the Eighth Circuit has upheld a South Dakota law that requires doctors to distribute written statements that abortion causes “increased risk of suicidal ideation and suicide.” Amazing. The ruling came in Planned Parenthood v. Rounds, a lawsuit that has been bouncing between the District Court and Court of Appeals for seven years. Irin [...]