Courts Liberalism and Rights by Jason Pierceson
In the courts, the best chance for achieving a broad set of rights for gays and lesbians lies with judges who view liberalism as grounded in an expansion of rights rather than a constraint of government activity. At a time when most gay and lesbian politics focuses only on the issue of gay marriage, Courts, Liberalism, and Rights guides readers through a nuanced discussion of liberalism, court rulings on sodomy laws and same-sex marriage, and the comparative progress gays and lesbians have made via the courts in Canada. As debates continue about the ability of courts to affect social change, Jason Pierceson argues that this is possible. He claims that the greatest opportunity for reform via the judiciary exists when a judiciary with broad interpretive powers encounters a political culture that endorses a form of liberalism based on broadly conceived individual rights; not a negative set of rights to be held against the state, but a set of rights that recognizes the inherent dignity and worth of every individual.
"Courts, Liberalism, and Rights is passionate scholarship at its bestIt is a thoughtful defense of judicial activism to protect the inherent dignity and worth of every individual. This book should be required reading for every member of Congress and the Executive Branch concerned about 'judicial activism.'"-Michael Mello, Vermont Law School, and author of Legalizing Gay Marriage "Pierceson has written an engaging book that should appeal to a broad array of readers. It lucidly explores issues of public law, comparative politics, political culture, liberal political theory, and institutionalism."-Evan Gerstmann, Loyola Marymount University "This is an excellent analysis of many of the legal issues dealing with sodomy and same-sex marriages, and helps to explain why they have developed in the way that they have. The material is theoretically rich and grounded in diverse literature."-Richard Pacelle, Georgia Southern University
Jason Pierceson is Assistant Professor of Political and Legal Studies at the University of Illinois at Springfield.
| SKU | Unavailable |
| ISBN 13 | 9781592134014 |
| ISBN 10 | 1592134017 |
| Title | Courts Liberalism and Rights |
| Author | Jason Pierceson |
| Series | Queer Politics Queer Theories |
| Condition | Unavailable |
| Binding Type | Paperback |
| Publisher | Temple University Press,U.S. |
| Year published | 2005-10-02 |
| Number of pages | 264 |
| Cover note | Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary. |
| Note | Unavailable |