And for Gay Women
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and for Gay Women SAN FRATíCISCO DALTHTCRS BILJTIS Statemant oí Pur.rac'Je SISTERS ...a women's oxgranizatian to ai.-i the ’.esSian ?r Xysaww W A r AyMIww discrorerinq tier place in socüetj sn'? to edvrat^ «»T MITCV I liifSuCt *AT.tUV,-«Wf iC^OO society to understóJ^d and accept: her, i^ithcr.^ prejudice, and... 1. Te encourage and support cha iras;..van in Kc-r search for her social, econor.ic, personal, interpersonal and vocntional identity within society by maintaining and building a liJararp ______ DGB BOARD MEMBERS ________ on the themes of homosexualj.ty and womenj by providing social functions where she can ccmmunl- President................ .. Liane cate with others and expand her social world out Vice-President .......... , Millie side the baur .scene j and by providing au" organized Correspondence Pat & Lois structure through which she can work to change Treasurer...................Melinda society's limitations opon her lifestyles; by Speakers' Bureau .......... Linda B. providing a forum for the interchange of ideas Secretary. ................. Paula and constructive solutions to women’s problems. Art Coordinator. ...... Laura 2. To educate the public to accept and understand the Lesbiari as an individual, thereby leading to the breaikdown of taboos, prejudices, and limitations on her lifestyle by spo-nsoring Volume V Number 4 public discussions; by providing individuals as speakers and pairticipants in various forums de signed to educate the public; by disseminating educational and rational literature on the besbian 3. To encourage, support and participate in responsible research dealing with homosexuality, 4. To investigate the penal code and to pro mote changes, in order to provide equitable h.s»d- ling of cases involving homosexuals, with, due process of law and without prejudice. ‘¡AY AND BELIEVt THAT OAV I£ GOOD SA'-’ ftA H C rS C C DR-JGHTSFl:: OG STd.ITISf AN AfrX-rXi’f Or SAf'l ‘-TA'CJSCO 1026 HA^ONIC S'";'Ki.T SAN SnANC'S^O, CALI row.:.' 94117 ON RESEARCHING LESBIAN CONTENTS [M On Researching Lesbian Law. ...................3 Here are The Results.......................... 8 by R, A, Basile POETRY SECTION ............................ CALENDAR ........................... Jill Johnston on Lesbian-Feminism ........... 18 As ® Lesbian law student, The Women's Music Festival................... 22 I am in am oxymoronic Broader News from Fcur Out Lesbians* .... .26 situation! an oppressed LOCAL LESBIAN NEWS............................ 29 person learning the tools of an oppressive system. Since I think it is important to use my skills to the advantage of my people, I set out to learn how the law affects Lesbians. The task is turning out to be much more difficult than I thought it would SISTERS Magazine @ April 1974 by Daughters of be, and for unexpected reasons. Bilitis, San F r a n ^ c o , Reoroduction by oennission When I started my research, I called a Lesbian of S.F. DOB Board Members. lawyer of my acquaintance and told her I wamted to know "everything there is to know about Lesbian law." She laughed and said, "There isn't much." Having now spent some time researching the subject, Cover Photo thanks to Pat Kuess; I think she was wrong. I am beginning to suspect for further details see page 22 that there are a great many cases in which Lesbians amd Lesbian issues are involved. The problem is not that there isn't much Lesbian law, but that there isn't much reported. HAVE YOU MOVED? If SO, please send us your change I ^ using the word "report" in a technical legal of address as soon as you know it| the P.O. charges sense which requires some explanation. A reported u% from 10<! to 25<: for each returned magazine case is one which appears in the legal literature. and you don't get any issue they return so we An unreported case does not. Both kinds of cases all lose. have the seune legal effect. The difference is that the reported case will be relatively easy to find; an unreported case is exceedingly difficult to find. Most cases involving Lesbi^ms, naturally, *u:e un reported. This is important, because it madces things conplicated for anyone arguing a Lesbian case--not to mention the Lesbian involved. o Americem law is based on a system of "precedent." It is not enough to go into court and say, "This © the case shouldn't be recognized as precedent at law is unfair." You have to find "precedents" all because it's from another state. or other legal "authority" to give credence to A final possibility is that there may be no your argument. Precedents are cases previously cases "on point" which match your particular situa litigated; these decisions that have been handed tion; this will happen especially when you are try down are most important. Other legal authority ing to make new law. Then you have to go farther might consist of legal articles by respected and farther afield for "analogous" cases and just commentators (e,g,« Harvard Law Review), To make up the rest. that you might add non-legal opinion (e.g., All of this explaining is just meant to show how studies by shrinks who say homosexuals aren't important it is to have cases to rely on for argu sick). Finally, the argument might be completed ment. How do you find the cases? With reported with "public policy" arguments (e,g,, do we really cases, you simply go to the library. Legal re want to deprive a child of her mother just because search is dull and time-consuming, but it's not she's a dyke?). But this stuff is mostly icing; particularly difficult. You just look up the the caúce of the argument is precedential case law. cases and read the opinions amd that's it. So the first thing you have to do is look up Most Lesbian cases, as noted earlier, are not all the cases which fit your particular situation, reported. How do you go aibout finding unreported either because the facts are the same or the facts cases? One lawyer I talked to said, "Well, you are analogous, (A good example is women's rights just have to know what's going on. You get on the law. Women auren't in nearly as good a legal posi telephone. He meant that you just have to call tion as blacks; women's rights lawyers use black other lawyers and ask around, A more systematic civil rights cases as precedents-by-analogy to way is to write to the clerk of the Supreme Court argue that women aure in similar situations and in each particular state. The problem with that should be granted the same relief.) After you've is that it will usually be necessary to tell the got the cases, you read the decisions~or holdings, clerk the name of either a plaintiff or a defendant, as they are also called--to see how closely they since cases will be listed by the names of the par fit what you want to argue. If they fit what you ties, not the sxibject matter of the litigation. want to say exactly, that is rare and very good, This is like the old problem of not being able to (This is most likely to happen in simple divorce get work without experience, and not being able to or breach of contract cases, where people keep get experience unless you have a job. How am I doing the same miserable things to each other over supposed to know the names of the people involved amd over again.) It is more likely that the hold in Lesbian litigation in, say, Kentucky, unless ings will be mixed— maybe they go mostly your way the cases are reported? or the other, or maybe it really is a toss-up. The reason cases are not recommended for report Then you just do the best you can. ing is simple; prejudice," Lesbian cases are too Another possibility is that the decisions may unsavory to be printed in the lawbooks— they might all be against you, in which case you are in tarnish the sleek beauty of the law. Even when trouble. You have to try to "distinguish" any they are reported, judges will try if the possibly decisions which hold against you. Obviously this can to avoid speaking the too, too awful word means that you try to separate an unfavorable case Lesbian, One case I know was decided recently by as much as possible from your situation. You may the Supreme Court of North Carolina; the court, say the facts are not truly analogous, or the most reluctantly and only because there was no reasoning is bad, or you may be able to say that reasonable alternative, gave a Lesbian mother ® custody of her own children. (This itself is big news— Lesbian mothers are usually presumed "unfit.") In its opinion, however, the court stated that the facts in the case were "incredible." and "beyond LAVENDER WOMAN the pale." so much so that the court failed to re veal precisely what they were. It is only in the dissent, which freaks out and spills the beans, that it is possible to figure out that the mother in ouestion is gay. The trouble with this kind of side-of-the-mouth reporting is that it has doubtful precedential value. It is true that in this case the North Carolina Supreme Court gave a Lesbian n\other custody. But because the court was trying so hard to avoid the Lesbian issue, the opinion never says, "So what if she*s a Lesbian? She's a OUR LESBIAN-FEMINIST NEWSPAPER damn good mother." That can only be gleaned impli SEND S3.00 for one sui'.scription TO P.O.