The Human Rights Campaign expressed hope that the U.S.
Supreme Court will strike down unjust and discriminatory sodomy laws
after hearing arguments in Lawrence v. Texas. The case,
brought by Lambda Legal, challenges the constitutionality of state
sodomy laws, which are frequently used as a tool for discriminating
against the gay and lesbian community.
"We hope that the Supreme Court will have the wisdom to see these laws
for what they are — mechanisms used to justify discrimination against
gay and lesbian Americans," said HRC Executive Director Elizabeth Birch.
"These laws have been used to deny gay men and lesbians jobs, refuse gay
and lesbian parents custody of their own children, and for blocking
non-discrimination laws and hate crime legislation."
John Lawrence and Tyron Garner pleaded no contest to breaking the Texas
sodomy law in 1998, when police broke into Lawrence's home in search of
an armed intruder and discovered the two men engaged in intercourse.
Both men were arrested and then imprisoned overnight. They were fined
$200 each and had to pay court costs. The convictions bar both men from
holding several types of jobs in Texas. If they move to other states,
they could be required to register as sex offenders. Lambda Legal asked
the Supreme Court to hear the case and declare a violation of privacy
and equal protection.
HRC signed onto a "friend of the court", or amicus, brief written by the law firm of O'Melveny & Myers, LLP that summarizes the direct and
ancillary harms caused by sodomy laws. The brief describes the sodomy
laws as outdated. It provides strong evidence that gays and lesbians
are law-abiding, productive citizens who are healthy partners, good
parents, patriotic veterans and sometimes heroic citizens. A variety of
other civil rights organizations, religious groups, public health
experts, historians and others have also either signed or filed briefs
of their own in favor of repealing sodomy laws.
"These laws unfairly brand lesbian and gay people as criminal sexual
deviants, and burden them with legal stigmas like 'sex offender.' These
laws are clearly discriminatory. By striking them down the Supreme
Court could put an end to a tremendous and very real legal hardship on
this country's gay and lesbian community," said HRC Senior Counsel Liz
Seaton.
In 1986, the Supreme Court upheld sodomy laws 5-4 in Bowers v. Hardwick.
Since the ruling, much has changed. Only three justices from that
ruling remain on the bench. And the Georgia sodomy law, which was at
issue in Hardwick, was struck down by the Georgia Supreme Court in 1998.
In 1996, today's Supreme Court struck down an anti-gay amendment to the
Colorado Constitution on equal protection principles. Additionally,
since Bowers v. Hardwick, the number of state sodomy laws has declined
from 28 to 13, in large part because of the persistent court efforts of
Lambda Legal and the American Civil Liberties Union, as well as state
organizations fighting to overturn these laws.
Enviroshop is maintained by dedicated NetSys Interactive Inc. owners & employees who generously contribute their time to maintenance & editing, web design, custom programming, & website hosting for Enviroshop.