OutLaw is hosting its first general body meeting for the winter/spring semester. Members are encouraged to join for an overview of events we have planned for the spring semester, meet our new LLM members, and learn about March elections. Feel free to come with questions or ideas. Join the meeting with the following Zoom link: https://duke.zoom.us/j/7132791954. For more information, please contact Edward Gonzales at edward.l.gonzales@duke.edu.
Next Sunday! All queer law students are invited to connect with one another at our inaugural Valentine’s Day mixer. This light hearted event is meant to provide an opportunity to connect with other queer law students while also taking a break from studying.
Dear Members of the Duke Law Community,
We write to you disappointed and frustrated with the Duke Law Federalist Society’s decision to invite Helen Alvaré to Duke Law on October 26th. Professor Alvaré has called same-sex marriage “a horrid natural experiment in our country,” is a regular speaker at pro-conversion therapy events, and has called the decriminalization of homosexuality a mistake. She is affiliated with numerous anti-LGBTQ+ hate groups and regularly engages in what the Southern Poverty Law Center describes as hate speech, including in the book she intends to promote at Duke.
We are equally frustrated with the response of Dean Abrams and the Duke Law administration to our concerns. In her response, she explained that while she might personally oppose Alvaré, as Dean she would not oppose Alvaré’s harmful rhetoric. Last year, Dean Abrams acknowledged the harm caused by the Westboro Baptist Church, and took steps to ensure they would not be allowed on campus. But when hate comes with a law degree and Federalist Society sponsorship, it becomes more palatable to the administration.
To our classmates in the Federalist Society: know that we will remember you decided our civil liberties were up for debate. We will remember that you wanted to hear from those who would criminalize our very existence. To be clear, Alvaré’s views are so far removed from civility that even those who claim a “religious” opposition to marriage equality or LGBTQ+ rights do not support her position. Your professional and personal identities are forever stained by these hateful views and the harm you have caused to our community.
To Dean Abrams and the Duke Law administration: we are hurt by your failure to recognize us and the harm caused by Alvaré’s hate speech. This echoes the same marginalization that is so often directed at LGBTQ+ individuals. It is important to note that hostility to LGBTQ+ individuals is not new at Duke Law. Previous Federalist Society speakers have advocated for discrimination against LGBTQ+ people by private businesses, have deliberately misgendered trans attorneys, and have opposed our rights generally. Duke Law also routinely promotes scholarship that directly opposes the rights of transgender and intersex women worldwide.
If we cannot be assured that our school will defend our humanity, then how can we call the administration an ally to us? When prospective students ask us about our experiences at Duke, we will have to be honest with them about the environment they will encounter here. We recognize the efforts of the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee and the Office of Diversity Initiatives to try to make this school a more inclusive and welcoming place for LGBTQ+ students. But we will continue to fight to ensure future Duke Law students will not face the same indifference from their peers and the administration.
Thank you to our allies in this community for your solidarity and support! We hope for a better, more welcoming, and more supportive environment for us and for all members of this profession. Duke OutLaw will continue to work towards that goal.
Sincerely,
Duke OutLaw
OCT 29TH @ 12:30PM [ET] | https://duke.zoom.us/j/7132791954
NEXT FRIDAY!
Join OutLaw for a panel of LGBTQ+ attorneys from Debevoise, NRF, MoFo and Sullivan & Cromwell! They’ll be discussing life in BigLaw as queer attorneys, LGBTQ+ pro bono work and all other topics that relate to life as a queer lawyer!
Join us for a discussion on theocratic thinking and it’s impact on the LGBTQ+ community. Featuring special guest—literal puppet Helen Alvaré. Sponsored by OutLaw and Tricky Dick. Co-sponsored by NLG.
Please join us next week for a conversation with Judge J. Paul Oetken. Judge Oetken is the first openly gay man to be confirmed as an Article III judge. This event is sponsored by the Clerkship Office and OutLaw.
Space is limited.
Register here: https://duke.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJUodu6oqD8qE9EzMWS_R7I5rv9q60CJye7F
October 16th at 12:30–1:30 pm [ET]
Please join the Human Rights Law Society and Outlaw for a conversation with Kyle Knight, Cristian González Cabrera, and Ames Simmons, moderated by Jayne Huckerby, Clinical Professor of Law and Director of the International Human Rights Clinic (IHRC). Kyle Knight is a Senior Researcher with the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Rights Program of Human Rights Watch and will speak to how LGBTQIA+ communities have been impacted by COVID-19 internationally. Cristian González Cabrera, Researcher with the Human Rights Watch’s Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Rights Program will discuss his work in Panama. And Ames Simmons, Senior Lecturing Fellow at Duke Law and the Policy Director of Equality NC will speak to the impact of COVID 19 on the LGBTQIA+ community domestically.
Join the event here: https://duke.zoom.us/s/95544974645.
Sponsored by the Human Rights Law Society and Outlaw. For more information, please contact Edward Gonzales at edward.l.gonzales@duke.edu.
Queer Femmes Mixer, October 2, 2020 at 7:00 – 9:00 p.m: Part of OutLaw’s virtual community mixers series, we invite all femme-identifying queer law students to connect and socialize over Zoom. Co-sponsored by OutLaw and the Women Law Students Association. For more information, please contact Alex Murphy at alexandria.murphy@duke.edu.
Zoom link: https://duke.zoom.us/j/94509720855
Queer & Trans Law Students of Color Mixer, September 24, 2020 at 6:00 – 8:00 p.m: OutLaw is excited to kick off the semester with virtual community mixers. We invite all queer and trans law students of color to join and connect with one another. Co-sponsored by OutLaw, the Asian Pacific American Law Students Association, the Black Law Students Association, the Latin American Law Students Association, the Middle East and North African Law Students Association, the South Asian Law Students Association, and the Womxn of Color Collective. For more information, please contact Edward Gonzales at edward.l.gonzales@duke.edu.
Zoom Link: https://duke.zoom.us/j/7132791954
General Body Meeting, September 14, 2020 at 12:30 – 1:30 p.m. OutLaw is hosting its inaugural virtual general body meeting for the 2020-2021 Academic Year. Interested members are encouraged to join for an overview of events we have planned for the fall semester and to meet the Board. Feel free to come with questions or ideas. For more information, please contact Edward Gonzales at edward.l.gonzales@duke.edu.
Zoom Link: https://duke.zoom.us/j/7132791954
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