Of courts and closets: A doctrinal and empirical analysis of lesbian and gay identity in the courts

The decision to acknowledge one's sexual orientation is an essential step toward lesbian and gay persons' full and equal participation in American society. Legal rules can help or hinder this process; current doctrine, unfortunately, does both. Nevertheless, the closet is not a solution to anti-gay discrimination; forced invisibility is a form of anti-gay inequality. This article explores how the Supreme Court's recent speech decisions have transformed lesbian and gay identity into speech with the result that others are able to force gay people back into the closet. The article then empirically details the finding of the California Judicial Council study .