Women in American law : the struggle toward equality from the New Deal to the present / Judith A. Baer.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Baer, Judith A.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Women--Legal status, laws, etc--United States--History.

Women.

Women--Legal status, laws, etc.

United States.

History.

Physical Description:

x, 388 pages ; 24 cm

Edition:

Third edition.

Place of Publication:

New York : Holmes & Meier, 2002.

Summary:

In a lively, engaged style and from an informed feminist perspective, Judith Baer presents us with one of the most comprehensive and provocative up-to-date accounts on women's legal status in contemporary American society. This revised and expanded volume features new discussions on constitutional law (including the United States v. Virginia [VMI case]), sexual harassment (the Paula Jones case, same-sex harassment, employer responsibility, and harassment in schools), child custody (examines the shift toward presumption in favour of the primary caregiver and includes an updated treatment of the father's rights movement), advances in reproductive technology, the impact of "new federalism" in the Supreme Court (including the United States v. Morrison [VAWA Case]), and the effects of war and recession on women's status.

Contents:

1 Introduction: Women and the Law 1

2 Women and the Constitution 18

The Historical Background 21

1937: The Battle of the New Deal 24

The Slough of Patriarchy: 1937-1971 25

The Warren Court and the Rights Revolution 28

Tiers and a "Mezzanine": The Burger Court Years 30

Intermediate Scrutiny: Judging the Justifications 34

The Rights of Unwed Fathers, If They Have Any 39

What Are All These Men Doing Here? 45

The VMI Case 46

When Is Discrimination Not Discrimination? 48

Separate but Equal 51

The Constitutional Mini-Revolution 52

The Equal Rights Amendment 56

3 Women and Employment 65

Equal Pay and Comparable Worth 69

Equal Opportunity and Sex Discrimination 77

Title VII and Protective Legislation 79

"Sex Plus" Discrimination, Redefined 82

Sexual Harassment 85

Indirect Discrimination and Facially Neutral Rules 92

Indirection and Subjectivity 95

Affirmative Action: Past and Future 100

The Worker as Mother, Actual or Potential 109

Conclusion: One Cheer for a Paycheck 117

4 Women's Intimate Lives: Beyond the Patriarchal Family 120

Preserving Family Values 122

Law, Society, and the Family 127

From Divorce to Dissolution 134

No-Fault Divorce and the Feminization of Poverty 139

The Government and the Former Family 144

Child Custody 147

Fathers' Rights and Adoption 158

Death, Patriarchy, and the American Family 159

5 Women and Reproduction 171

Where Individualism Fails: Pregnancy and Power 172

"If We Don't Own the Flesh We Stand In": Fertility and Freedom 175

Infertility by Fiat: Compulsory Sterilization 180

Squelching and Squealing: The Special Case of the Young 184

The Right to Motherhood 185

Motherhood and the New Technology 187

Reproductive Freedom and the Right to Privacy 194

Abortion and the Constitution 198

Since Roe: A Feminist Jurisprudence of Reproductive Rights 201

Whose Choice? Whose Knowledge? What Conditions? When? 205

Abortions and Public Funding 210

The Future of Choice 214

6 Gateways and Barriers: Education and Participation 221

The Walls Crumble Down: From the 1930s to the 1970s 224

Educational Equality and Congressional Initiative 232

Courts, Congress, and Civil Rights 235

Women in the Educational System 241

Women and Community Life: Removing the Barriers 243

Prioritizing Rights: Private Association and Public Good 248

7 Practitioners, Actors, Subjects: Women in the Legal System 255

Rape: A Crime of Patriarchy 256

Dirty Little Secrets: Violence Within the Family 264

Dirty Little Secrets: The Sexual Abuse of Children 268

Violence Without Force: The Case of Pornography 273

Women and Crime 276

Women in the Hands of an Angry Law 281

Women in the Legal Profession 284

8 Conclusion: From Patriarchy Toward Equality 295

Power and Patriarchy: A Recapitulation 296

From Patriarchy Toward Equality 298

The Future of Sexual Equality 300

Feminist Bashing: The Power of Backlash 303

Utopian and Dystopian Visions 310

The Problem that Won't Go Away 315

Equality and the Law 316.

Notes:

First ed. published in 1991 as v. 2 of Women in American law.

Includes bibliographical references (pages [323]-362) and indexes.

ISBN:

0841914338

0841914311

OCLC:

50280007