"Aside from the laws the decision strikes down, the case has huge symbolic importance and is a major victory for gay rights advocates." There are three other important aspects of this decision, Schiappa says.
"First, it overturns Bowers v Hardwick, which is significant because that decision has been used to legitimate discrimination against gays and lesbians in the workplace and in decisions about child visitation and custody. Second, it sets an important precedent. The decision says you cannot single out homosexuals under the law for restrictions without a very good reason for doing so," he says.
This could lead to important future decisions that protect the civil rights of homosexuals and bisexuals, he says.
"Third, it was a reasonably close decision. Keep in mind that three Supreme Court justices voted to uphold the law. And if it was a national law it wouldcriminalize at least 600,000 households. This means that future Supreme Court justices should be picked very carefully," Schiappa says.
Law Professor wrote "Friend of the Court" Brief on Case
Dale Carpenter, a University of Minnesota Law School professoris available to discuss Lawrence v. Texas. He wrote an amicus ("friend of the court") brief in support of the petitioners in the Texas case. Carpenter teaches in the areas of constitutional law, sexual orientation and the law, and commercial law. His current research interests include same-sex harassment and the First Amendment. Carpenter says Lawrence v. Texas is probably the most important gay rights case that the U.S. Supreme Court has had to decide. Carpenter wrote the brief on behalf of the Republican Unity Coalition, a national organization of Republicans, both straight and gay, committed to making sexual orientation a "non-issue" within the Republican Party and throughout the nation.
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