Synopses & Reviews
Focusing on six major Supreme Court cases during the 1960s and 1970s, Marc Stein examines the generally liberal rulings on birth control, abortion, interracial marriage, and obscenity in Griswold, Eisenstadt, Roe, Loving, and Fanny Hill alongside a profoundly conservative ruling on homosexuality in Boutilier. In the same era in which the Court recognized special marital, reproductive, and heterosexual rights and privileges, it also upheld an immigration statute that classified homosexuals as "psychopathic personalities." Stein shows how a diverse set of influential journalists, judges, and scholars translated the Court's language about marital and reproductive rights into bold statements about sexual freedom and equality.
Review
"Marc Stein turns conventional wisdom upside down in this provocative critique of Supreme Court decisions in the era of the sexual revolution. Stein forces us to rethink what liberalism means in ways that extend far beyond issues of sexuality."--John D'Emilio, coauthor of Intimate Matters: A History of Sexuality in America
Review
"This is an impressive, important, and well-researched book on the Supreme Court's development and elaboration of the constitutional right to privacy. Marc Stein, who is a wonderful microhistorian, illuminates the underlying interpretive complexities of this period, including the ways in which the opinions of the Supreme Court are often publicly misunderstood."--David A. J. Richards, Edwin D. Webb Professor of Law, New York University
Review
"A major contribution to our understanding of the Supreme Court's early privacy cases. Marc Stein's rendering of the case of the Canadian 'psychopath' is the definitive account of an underappreciated judicial mistake."--William Eskridge, John A. Garver Professor of Jurisprudence, Yale Law School
Review
"Stein's analysis [of the case of
Boutilier] is thorough, nuanced, and multifaceted."
-Journal of American History
Synopsis
Focusing on six major Supreme Court cases, Stein examines the more liberal rulings on birth control, abortion, interracial marriage, and obscenity in Griswold, Fanny Hill, Loving, Eisenstadt, and Roe alongside a profoundly conservative ruling on homosexuality in Boutilier during the 1960s and 1970s. In the same era in which the Court recognized special marital, reproductive, and heterosexual rights and privileges, it also upheld an immigration statute that classified homosexuals as "psychopathic personalities." Stein shows that a diverse set of influential journalists, judges, and scholars translated the Court's language about marital and reproductive rights into bold statements about sexual freedom and equality.
Synopsis
Focusing on six major Supreme Court cases, Stein examines the more liberal rulings on birth control, abortion, interracial marriage, and obscenity in Griswold, Fanny Hill, Loving, Eisenstadt, and Roe alongside a profoundly conservative ruling on homosexuality in Boutilier during the 1960s and 1970s. In the same era in which the Court recognized special marital, reproductive, and heterosexual rights and privileges, it also upheld an immigration statute that classified homosexuals as "psychopathic personalities." Stein shows that a diverse set of influential journalists, judges, and scholars translated the Court's language about marital and reproductive rights into bold statements about sexual freedom and equality.
About the Author
Marc Stein is associate professor of history, women's studies, and sexuality studies at York University in Toronto. He is author of City of Sisterly and Brotherly Loves: Lesbian and Gay Philadelphia and editor-in-chief of the award-winning Encyclopedia of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender History in America.