Next month’s Justice in Action luncheon will highlight the connectedness among the local, national and international LGBT-rights movements.
The event, held from 10 a.m.-1:30 p.m. Feb. 19 at 200 S. Broad St., raises funds for Mazzoni Center’s legal-services department.
This year’s honoree is Jessica Stern, executive director of International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission. Stern was the first researcher on LGBT rights at Human Rights Watch and has led investigations into LGBT-rights violations in Iran, Krygyzstan, South Africa and the United Arab Emirates.
Stern will join attorney Wendy Castor Hess, a partner at Goldblum & Hess, and Dr. Eileen Doherty-Sil, an adjunct associate professor at University of Pennsylvania, for a continuing-legal education course from 10 a.m.-11:30 a.m., before the lunch and award presentation. The course is organized by attorney Andrew Chirls of Fineman Krekstein & Harris, P.C., who is co-chairing the event with attorney Margaret Klaw of Berner Klaw & Watson, LLP.
Thomas Ude, Mazzoni Center legal and public policy director, said the selection of Stern as the guest of honor segued into the idea of having a discussion on global LGBT-rights issues.
“We’re looking at ways LGBT rights, on the local and national levels, influence and are influenced by the global movement,” Ude said. “As we’re seeing with the marriage-equality movement, when same-sex couples travel from one state to another, there are important rights and protections that they lose or gain, which makes them vulnerable. And I think that, to be responsible global citizens, we have to be mindful to ensure that, as we make advances, no one gets left behind; there are a lot of protections we currently have, but there are places that are not as friendly to LGBT people, and places where LGBT rights are simply absent.”
Ude added that, as the United States strives to stay at the forefront of the LGBT-rights movement, it’s important to be cognizant of where international issues stand.
He noted that the 2003 U.S. Supreme Court case that struck down sodomy laws referenced international legal developments to support its conclusion that same-sex intimacy is protected by the U.S. Constitution.
“Although similar references were absent from the Supreme Court’s 2013 Windsor decision, except for a passing mention by the dissent, the progress and regression of LGBT-rights issues globally has been and continues to be important for people in the United States, where we strive to continue to be in the forefront of the ongoing struggle for equality,” he said.
Ude said Stern will add interesting, firsthand experiences to that discussion. “We’re really excited about the event,” Ude said. “We have a great honoree, a great CLE event, a wonderful committee that has worked really hard and we’re looking forward to having a really great attendance.”
The CLE course is $149 for Pennsylvania Bar Association or county bar association members, $159 for nonmembers and $79 for non-attorneys or attorneys not seeking CLE credits. The price does not include the luncheon. General admission to the luncheon is $75, or $60 for a public-interest attorney or staff member and $50 for a law student with valid ID. Sponsorship opportunities are also available.
For more information or tickets, visit www.mazzonicenter.org.