Date: Thu, 29 Sep 1994 00:38:10 -0400 (EDT) From: Mary Sylla THE NATIONAL JOURNAL OF SEXUAL ORIENTATION LAW VOL. 1, ISSUE 1 Thanks for subscribing to the National Journal of Sexual Orientation Law, the first on-line law journal in the country and the second devoted exclusively to legal issues affecting lesbians, gay men and bisexuals. The Journal's primary purpose is to disseminate information and ideas about law and sexual orientation in an efficient and timely manner. In addition to traditional scholarship the Journal will include a substantial proportion of essays, summaries and transcripts of oral presentations, surveys and student work. Also, our editorial process will be abbreviated. Though we plan to become a respected source of information, our primary goal is to be useful to the gay and lesbian legal community and the gay and lesbian community at large: to do that we need to have a quick turn-around time and be open to submissions of all types. By virtue of being available on-line, subscription to the Journal is free. Individuals can subscribe themselves by sending the following message (replacing the bracketed phrases with the appropriate information) to listserv@unc.edu: subscribe gaylaw [YOUR FIRST NAME] [YOUR LAST NAME] Subscribers will receive bulletins with short summaries of the articles available and information on how to retrieve them when each new issue comes on-line. We also plan to start a brief bank, a collection of briefs filed on behalf of gays and lesbians by attorneys who are willing to share them with others. Announcements of the brief bank's availability and additions will be sent to subscribers as well. Thanks for your interest. We believe the Journal and the brief bank have a tremendous potential to empower and coordinate the gay and lesbian legal community's pursuit of equal rights. If you want to get more involved, or have briefs to contribute to the brief bank, please e-mail Mary Sylla at mmsylla@gibbs.oit.unc.edu. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- ADVISORY BOARD Patricia Cain Rhonda Rivera Ruth Colker Ruthann Robson Daniel Ortiz Francisco Valdes* *The editor would like to specially acknowledge the support, encouragement, assistance and friendship of Prof. Valdes, without whom this Journal would likely not have been produced. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- STAFF Mary Sylla, Editor Rick Fernandez Sandra E. Nemeth Leo Schuman TECHNOLOGICAL ASSISTANCE Ron Buckmire, Queer Resources Directory Paul Jones, UNC Office for Information Technology Sun Microsystems ------------------------------------------------------------------ To receive articles via e-mail send the following message to listserv@unc.edu: get gaylaw [ARTICLE AUTHOR'S LAST NAME] To receive a current index of available articles send the following message to listserv@unc.edu index gaylaw The National Journal of Sexual Orientation Law is also available from Queer Resources Directory at vector.casti.com. ------------------------------------------------------------------ Cite as 1 Nat'l J. Sex. Orient. L. _____ (1994) (paginated versions of the articles will be available by Sept. 16, 1994) ------------------------------------------------------------------ ARTICLES Volume 1, Issue 1 Coming Out and Stepping Up: Queer Legal Theory and Connectivity Prof. Francisco Valdes California Western School of Law In this article Francisco Valdes calls for the creation of Queer Legal theory based on the coalescence of a "sexual minority" over the past twenty-five years. Prof. Valdes discusses the relationship of Queer Legal theory to Feminist Legal Theory and Critical Race Theory detailing the common "psycho-social isolation" of gays and lesbians, women and racial minorities. He encourages recognition of the common interests and goals of the three groups and urges each to be sensitive to the interrelationship, or "connectivity," among them. Analysis of the Opinion of the Attorney General of California on the Registration of Names of Family Associations by the Secretary of State Thomas F. Coleman and David F. Link Family Diversity Project In this article, Thomas Coleman and David Link explain and analyze a recent attempt by gay and lesbian families in California to gain legal recognition by registering with the Secretary of State as unincorporated nonprofit associations as "family associations." Despite opposition by state senators and an opinion from the legislative counsel saying that the registration could not be used by such groups, the Secretary of State of California refused to prohibit family association registration. The authors analyze the statutory language of the California Corporations Code relating to associational name registration and discusses the interpretations used by the Legislative Counsel and the Attorney General's offices in light of the highly charged political atmosphere surrounding gay and lesbian families and the religious right. A (Personal) Essay on Same-Sex Marriage Prof. Barbara J. Cox California Western School of Law In this article Barbara Cox examines the institution of marriage in the gay and lesbian community from a personal perspective. Prof. Cox reviews recent articles in the gay and lesbian literature arguing both for and against marriage as a political goal for homosexuals. She then relates experiences arising out of her marriage to her partner, Peg. The author advocates same- sex unions as a way to radically restructure the institution of marriage while challenging heterosexual assumptions about gay and lesbian love. Recognition of Domestic Partnerships by Governmental Entities and Private Employers Prof. Lewis Becker Villanova University Law School In this piece, a summary of a presentation to the American Bar Association's Family Law Section in April, Lewis Becker discusses the creation and benefits of domestic partnerships. Prof. Becker explains and examines arguments advanced by opponents of the recognition of domestic partners concluding that these arguments are not supported by the evidence. Finally Prof. Becker points out questions about the legal effects of domestic partner registration which remain unanswered. Death Penalty for Lesbians Prof. Victor Streib Cleveland State University In this piece Victor Streib looks at compilations of his data on the effect of gender on the likelihood a person accused of a capital crime will be sentenced to death, and asks if a woman's lesbianism impacts the incidence of her being sentenced to death and finally executed. Using 4 case studies of women who were sentenced to death in cases where their lesbianism played a role, Prof. Streib finds that a number of factors impact the equation. While lesbianism is not seen as a mitigating factor, it is often overshadowed by the extreme violence of the crime, and thus does not stand out as an aggravating factor. Baehr v. Lewin: Will Equal Protection Lead to the End of Prohibitions on Same-Sex Marriages? Greg Ladner Student, Villanova University Law School In this casenote Greg Ladner reviews the decision by the Hawaii Supreme Court regarding same-sex marriage, Baehr v. Lewin. Ladner begins with an examination of the regulation of marriage in the United States by state courts and the U.S. Supreme Court, then reviews the history of attempts of same-sex couples to gain legal recognition; he then examines the Baehr decision and concludes with a discussion of the national impact this case may have as other states face the same issue. ______________________________________________________________________________