Through engaging storytelling and powerful photographs, Courting Equality takes readers through the volatile public debate following the legalization of same-sex marriage in Massachusetts-from the court cases to the protests and, finally, the weddings!

Women and the LGBT community in Russia and Turkey face pervasive discrimination. Only a small percentage dare to challenge their mistreatment in court. Facing domestic police and judges who often refuse to recognize discrimination, a small minority of activists have exhausted their domestic appeals and then turned to their last hope: the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR). The ECtHR, located in Strasbourg, France, is widely regarded as the most effective international human rights court in existence. Russian citizens whose rights have been violated at home have brought tens of thousands of cases to the ECtHR over the past two decades. But only one of these cases resulted in a finding of gender discrimination by the ECtHR-and that case was brought by a man. By comparison, the Court has found gender discrimination more frequently in decisions on Turkish cases. Courting Gender Justice explores the obstacles that confront citizens, activists, and lawyers who try to bring gender discrimination cases to court. To shed light on the factors that make rare victories possible in discrimination cases, the book draws comparisons among forms of discrimination faced by women and LGBT people in Russia and Turkey. Based on interviews with human rights and feminist activists and lawyers in Russia and Turkey, this engaging book grounds the law in the personal experiences of individual people fighting to defend their rights.

In this updated, paperback edition of Winning Marriage, Marc Solomon, a veteran leader in the movement for marriage equality, gives the reader a seat at the strategy-setting and decision-making table in the campaign to win and protect the freedom to marry. With depth and grace he reveals the inner workings of the advocacy movement that has championed and protected advances won in legislative, court, and electoral battles over the years since the landmark Massachusetts ruling guaranteeing marriage for same-sex couples for the first time. The paperback edition includes a new afterword on the historic 2015 Supreme Court ruling on marriage that includes practical lessons from the marriage campaign that are applicable to other social movements. From the gritty clashes in the state legislatures of Massachusetts and New York to the devastating loss at the ballot box in California in 2008 and subsequent ballot wins in 2012 to the joys of securing President Obama's support and achieving ultimate victory in the Supreme Court, Marc Solomon has been at the center of one of the great civil and human rights movements of our time. Winning Marriage recounts the struggle with some of the world's most powerful forces-the Catholic hierarchy, the religious right, and cynical ultraconservative political operatives-and the movement's eventual triumph.

The complete text of the landmark Supreme Court decision on marriage equality The 2015 Supreme Court decision Obergefell et al. v. Hodges legalized gay marriage across the United States. This edition collects the widely quoted decision by Justice Kennedy, as well as the dissents of Justices Roberts, Scalia, Thomas, and Alito. Of tremendous interest to general readers and students of American history, The U.S. Supreme Court Decision on Marriage Equality is a milestone in the history of human and civil rights. It is an essential document of our times.

The "orphan train" seemed like small-town spinster Adelaide Crum's last chance to know the simple joys of family life. So many lost children, every one of them dreaming only of a caring home—the home she longed to offer. And yet the narrow-minded town elders refused to entrust even the most desperate child to a woman alone…. Newspaperman Charles Graves believed his heart was closed forever, but he swore to stand by this lovely, lonely woman who was fighting for the right to take some motherless child into her heart. And her gentle soul and unwavering faith made him wonder if even he could overcome the bitter lessons of the past, and somehow find the courage to love….

Examines the impact of marriage equality on the future of LGBT rights In persuading the Supreme Court that same-sex couples have a constitutional right to marry, the LGBT rights movement has achieved its most important objective of the last few decades. Throughout its history, the marriage equality movement has been criticized by those who believe marriage rights were a conservative cause overshadowing a host of more important issues. Now that nationwide marriage equality is a reality, everyone who cares about LGBT rights must grapple with how best to promote the interests of sexual and gender identity minorities in a society that permits same-sex couples to marry. This book brings together 12 original essays by leading scholars of law, politics, and society to address the most important question facing the LGBT movement today: What does marriage equality mean for the future of LGBT rights? After Marriage Equality explores crucial and wide-ranging social, political, and legal issues confronting the LGBT movement, including the impact of marriage equality on political activism and mobilization, antidiscrimination laws, transgender rights, LGBT elders, parenting laws and policies, religious liberty, sexual autonomy, and gender and race differences. The book also looks at how LGBT movements in other nations have responded to the recognition of same-sex marriages, and what we might emulate or adjust in our own advocacy. Aiming to spark discussion and further debate regarding the challenges and possibilities of the LGBT movement’s future, After Marriage Equality will be of interest to anyone who cares about the future of sexual equality.

The History of World TeamTennis covers the league's rich history from its start in the early 1970s to its historic 40th season celebration in 2015. Over the years, the biggest stars in tennis have played for the league, which was co-founded by equal rights pioneer and tennis champion Billie Jean King, including Martina Navratilova, Pete Sampras, Chris Evert, Andy Roddick, Serena and Venus Williams, and Andre Agassi. Benjamin Snyder has written for and worked with Billie Jean King since interning for World TeamTennis in 2011. Snyder has covered tennis extensively over the years and shares new interviews with some of the sport's most well-known players--as well as owners and others who have made the league a success. He also reveals how the league has promoted inclusivity and equality, living up to what King writes in the foreword: "If you have ever seen a World TeamTennis match, you have seen my philosophy of life in action--men and women--all genders--competing on the same team, making equal contributions, working together toward a common goal." Celebrate the players, founders, and supporters who have made World TeamTennis possible with this detailed history.

This groundbreaking case, with much pressure from suing parties across the country and a great amount of controversy, granted the “dignity of marriage” to same-sex couples. Readers will find out all about the background of the case, how it made it to the Supreme Court, and why the court decided for same-sex marriage. Also included are questions to consider, primary source documents, and a chronology of the case.

A veteran activist tackles urgent questions about where the gay movement should go and what the movement wants with a unique combination of visionary politics and hard-earned pragmatism. "A valuable, encyclopedic compendium of the gay movement’s modern history and challenges." —San Francisco Chronicle Since the decade to lift the ban on gays in the military, the emergence of gay conservatives, and the onslaught of antigay initiatives across America, the gay and lesbian community has been asking itself tough questions. In Virtual Equality, Urvashi Vaid offers wise answers.

Despite enormous changes in patterns of dating and courtship in twenty-first-century America, contemporary understandings of romance and intimacy remain firmly rooted in age-old assumptions of gender difference. These tenacious beliefs now vie with cultural messages of gender equality that stress independence, self-development, and egalitarian practices in public and private life. Through interviews with heterosexual and LGBTQ individuals, Ellen Lamont’s The Mating Game explores how people with diverse sexualities and gender identities date, form romantic relationships, and make decisions about future commitments as they negotiate uncertain terrain fraught with competing messages about gender, sexuality, and intimacy.