UIS professor publishes timely book on same-sex marriage and the Supreme Court

University of Illinois Springfield Associate Professor of Political Science Jason Pierceson has published a new book, Same-Sex Marriage in the United States: The Road to the Supreme Court, with Rowman & Littlefield Publishers.

The e-book is now available and the print version will be available in a few weeks. The publication of the book coincides with the Supreme Court oral arguments on two same-sex marriage cases in late-March 2013 and the decisions that are expected to be announced in June.

This book explores the legal, political, and cultural setting of the movement for same-sex marriage and its opposition in the United States, setting the stage for the first genuine engagement of the issue by the Supreme Court. In particular, the book examines the history of the movement, the philosophical and religious debates surrounding the movement and the opposition, developments around the world to put the U.S. movement in the proper context, state-by-state analysis of legal and political developments, and recent federal litigation paving the way to action by the Supreme Court. In doing so, the book highlights the role played by religion, political parties, and federalism, while arguing that litigation for same-sex marriage has achieved significant results, as well as creating a powerful backlash that will limit the national recognition of same-sex marriage in the short-term.

Reviewers have called the book a “superb account of how the question of same-sex marriage has become one of the preeminent civil rights issues of our time” and “an engaging and richly informative history of the struggle for marriage equality in the United States,” noting that it “has something for everybody.”

“The general public will appreciate Pierceson’s accessible prose and penchant for story-telling. Sociolegal scholars and scholars of LGBT rights will prize both the way Pierceson revisits and re-envisions key historical moments in the battle for marriage equality and his exploration of marriage equality politics in states and localities across the nation,” said Ellen Andersen of the University of Vermont.

For more on the book, visit https://rowman.com/ISBN/9781442212046. Pierceson is also available for media inquiries and interviews, public lectures, and book signings. Pierceson can be contacted at 217/206-7842 or jpier2@uis.edu.