gender law

Human Dignity Trust

The Human Dignity Trust is a British charity providing legal expertise to LGBT activists in countries where private, same-sex, consensual sexual activity is illegal. It supports strategic litigation and provides advice on reforming discriminatory laws. Its website has detailed global information about criminal laws regarding sexual orientation and gender identity, with a map, a history of LGBT criminalisation and a tool showing the status of criminal laws in Commonwealth jurisdictions. There is also a set of videos covering court cases, activists’ stories and related topics.

Trans Legislation Tracker

Trans Legislation is an independent research organisation monitoring US state and federal legislation relating to trans and gender-diverse people. Its online tracker provides detailed information about anti-trans bills and monitors their progress; it also covers Presidential executive orders. Full tracking information is available for each year from 2022 onwards, while earlier information (2015 onwards) can be found under ‘The Rise of Anti-Trans Bills’.

State Legislation Tracker

Online tool tracking the progress of both pro- and anti-LGBTQ+ state legislation in the United States. Gives the current status of each bill and offers AI-generated comparisons between versions. Users can register for alerts regarding particular bills. The tracker is provided by the Equality Federation, a non-profit network for state LGBTQ+ advocacy bodies.

ILGA World Database

Global database covering the law relating to sexual orientation, gender identity/expression and sex characteristics. Available in English or Spanish, it outlines the legal framework in all UN member states, other states and sub-national jurisdictions; it also covers ratification of human rights treaties and UN human rights procedures, such as the Universal Periodic Review. Includes the text of laws and court decisions - usually in the original language - and links to UN documents and news reports. Has timelines and customisable maps, charts and graphs, as well as a comparison tool.

Columbia Journal of Gender and Law

The Columbia Journal of Gender and Law has been published since 1991 by students at Columbia University School of Law. The biannual Journal has an interdisciplinary approach to national and international gender-related issues, relevant to people of different colour, class, sexual orientation, and culture. The aim is to advance feminist scholarship and to interest students, practitioners and academics. The website provides tables of contents and abstracts of most articles from volume 1 (1991) and from 2016 onwards has been published as an open access journal.

Harvard Journal of Law and Gender

The Harvard Journal of Law and Gender began in 1978 and is published twice a year by Harvard Law School students. The journal is devoted to developing and advancing feminist jurisprudence, and to combining legal analysis with political, economic, historical and sociological perspectives. The journal contains articles, notes and book reviews. The website provides articles from Spring 2003 onwards.

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