Courting Justice: Gay Men and Lesbians v. the Supreme Court

by Deb Price, Deb Price

Since 1958, twenty-five men and two women have forced the Supreme Court to consider whether the Constitution's promises of equal protection apply to gay Americans. Here Joyce Murdoch and Deb Price reveal how the nation's highest court has reacted to these cases -- from the surprising 1958 victory of a tiny homosexual magazine to the 2000 defeat of a gay Eagle Scout. A triumph of investigative reporting, Courting Justice gives us an inspiring new perspective on the struggle for civil rights in America.

Genres: LGBT, Nonfiction, History, Lesbian, Gay

592 pages, Paperback

First published November 30, 2000

Reviews

[Julia · Rating 5 out of 5]

I bought this many years ago but it has been sitting unread on my shelf until now.

This is an excellent history of how the U.S. Supreme Court handled or rejected court cases relating to gay and lesbian issues from the 1950s through the year 2000. The authors discuss the various Supreme Court justices and how their opinions evolved (or didn't) as the gay rights movement became more visible in the United States. They describe why the different cases were filed - freedom of the press, employment discrimination, lack of same-sex marriage, sodomy laws, gays and lesbians in the military...
They also describe the process by which cases are chosen or rejected by the Supreme Court and whether the court was ahead of or behind changes in public opinion. (Largely ahead for anti-racism in the time-frame of the book, largely behind for gay rights. There were a number of times when the authors believe that if a case had been about race-based discrimination instead of anti-gay discrimination it would have been decided differently).

It is very clearly written for lay people (i.e. you don't have to be a lawyer to understand).

My only gripe is that it was published in 2001 so there is no description of the more recent court decisions, especially the legalization of same-sex marriage in 2015. I would love to read a sequel for the 21st century.

[Clara Lefton · Rating 3 out of 5]

It seemed really interesting but it's very dense and after an intense workday, coming home to read something so thick I found challenging. I just wanted to relax and couldn't maintain the focus. If someone was doing a study on this topic I bet it would be a very helpful research book.

[Bella · Rating 3 out of 5]

A little hard to read at points, but I think that’s mostly because Supreme Court cases and procedures can be so dense. It’s thorough, certainly and a great read for anyone interested in gay history or law. I didn’t know until halfway through that it was written before Lawrence v. Texas which also makes it a fascinating historical artifact! At one point they say “what if Anthony Kennedy had become a gay rights champion after his Romer opinion?” and it’s kind of cool to say that it did sort of happen.

[Ryan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was fascinating. For one thing, it opened my eyes about just how hateful the discrimination against my gay and lesbian brothers and sisters has been in this county, from deporting gays as "psychopaths" to the shameful Bowers v. Hardwick "decision" (I use quotation marks because the majority opinion was nothing but a paean to the tyranny of the majority and to a view of gay and lesbian behavior that had already lost popularity with the general public and been disproved by science and psychiatry) that upheld sodomy laws. For another thing, it gives a view into the inner functioning of the Supreme Court and the strategy involved not only in selecting its justices but into the strategy involved in whether or not the Court even agrees to hear a case.

This book, though nonfiction, could almost be a novel. Throughout, it has its heroes, such as Justice Blackmun, whose Hardwick dissent affirmed that not everyone was against us, and its sometimes-heroes, such as Justices Kennedy and O'Connor, who overcame their natural conservatism to say "this Colorado cannot do" to a law that would have fenced gays and lesbians off from using the legislative process. It also has its villains, especially the infamous Scalia, who clearly has a prejudice against gays and lesbians (as well as a brutal reading of the Constitution that would limit the rights of every citizen in our country to those specifically enumerated in 1776).

Even though the legal system seems more friendly to gays and lesbians after decisions such as Lawrence v. Texas that occurred after this book's publication, this book is not dated, because, unfortunately, the tendency of even Supreme Court justices to hold an outdated, irrational view and then rationalize so that they may make judgments to that view is alive and well. Further, for me at least, understanding just how much gays and lesbians suffered--and how brave they were to stand up for their rights--is important to the gays and lesbians of my generation who have it easier because of the same. This is an important book for not only gays and lesbians but anyone who may, if people like Scalia have their way, be at the mercy of a "dead" Constitution and a majority that is all too quick to force a subjective idea of morality on everyone.

[Todd · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing what those before in the movement went through, the cases that were filed, the results, and how some would be revisited in the future. For a community that doesn't really have a "public history", it is a fascinating read.