Amy Krupinski, Resident Blogger (’14, William Mitchell College of Law)

Drugs courts have become increasingly popular in America since the 1990’s. They are an intervention program meant to alleviate caseload from the “regular” criminal justice system, provide intensive treatment and other services to participants in order to reduce drug use, reduce crime, save money, restore lives, save children and reunite families.

Designing a drug court requires the team to make a lot of difficult choices. Even choosing the right entry process for participants can be controversial! For some people, it makes sense to have drug court candidates come after a probation violation. These people may see probation as a form of intervention, especially if it requires treatment and counseling, it may be a less invasive intervention than drug court. Others may think that all drug court participants should be diverted into the program before failure of probation. What model the team chooses could depend on the capacity of your drug court and other factors. My point is, even from the beginning, implementing a drug court is a challenge met with diverse opinions and a myriad of complaints.

One major barrier in implementing a drug court is cultural competency. Here, we face challenges including court personnel who understand what it means to be culturally sensitive or culturally competent, but they don’t care to be and they won’t start acting that way because there is no reason for them to change.

One might say that obviously the best solution is then to make sure the insensitive, incompetent persons are not drug court team members, or perhaps these people need training that might open their eyes a little bit.  And the drug court team may have to face the pervasive unspoken opinion around the courthouse that is tip-toed around—“participants don’t care, and we don’t care, so why bother? The program isn’t going to change the participants.”

These are hardcore, lifelong users. It’s the adult version of ring-around-the-rosie, we chase each other ’round and ’round until we all fall down . . . from exhaustion, from repeated failure, from being burned out. Here especially, the drug using culture is a different culture than the one many of us experience in our daily lives.

I don’t mean to say that all people involved in drug court are so negative about the drug court experience; I hope to share an aspect of my job that I find unique and challenging. I can already see that these participants have experienced more successes (even with their relapses and failures) than they ever have in their drug using careers. When the participants are clear-headed and sober and tell us about their weekly successes and negative UA’s, it’s rewarding to feel their happiness. They are grateful someone is listening to them, they are enthusiastic about changing, and they have a sense of humor. Sure, it’s frustrating to know that they are high in court and lying about their last use—but that’s not so much their failure alone as it is the team’s failure to provide tools and resources.

Jamille Fields, Resident Blogger (Law Students for Reproductive Justice Fellow at the National Health Law Program)

The infamous TMZ video showing Ray Rice, a 5’8’’, 206 pound-football player punching his then-fiancée (now wife) out, the University of Montana at Missoula being dubbed “America’s Rape Capital” after at least 80 rapes were reported on campus within the last three years, the recent New Jersey high school football hazing scandal that resulted in three players being charged with various sexual assault crimes. Despite making recent headlines, sexual and domestic violence are unfortunately nothing new. To me, these instances indicate that we are not effectively teaching youth what constitutes a healthy relationship and acceptable sexual behavior. Youth then carry this lack of knowledge into adulthood.

Last month, I wrote about sexuality education in health care delivery, and this month I would like to pick up where I left off. There, I discussed how to help adolescents gain greater sexual health knowledge. But what is often overlooked is the important role sexuality education has in preventing sexual and domestic violence.

Young children are vulnerable to sexual abuse from teachers, parents, and other adults with whom they have a trust relationship. A recent United Nations Children’s Fund report correctly noted younger children are less likely to comprehend what is considered abuse. Sexuality education can teach children what constitutes inappropriate touching and behavior.

Adolescents in informal or dating relationships can be just as vulnerable to intimate partner violence as adults. Adolescents are often new to relationships and romantic feelings, and not knowing how to cope with these new feelings may lead them to physically act out against their mates. Their mates often don’t know how to respond to this physical abuse. Seventy percent of 15 to 19 year old adolescent girls who have been the victims of physical or sexual violence never sought help. The reasons vary, and include not understanding the abuse was a problem. Boys who experience abuse are even less likely to seek help due to stigma. LGTBQ youth and others who don’t conform to gender norms often become the targets of violence. Sexuality education can teach the signs of abusive relationships and healthy forms of sexual expression. Sexuality education should also include information on sexual orientation, and the sexual health education provided should be inclusive of same-sex relationships and sex.

Those who have unhealthy relationships during adolescence are more likely to have unhealthy relationships in adulthood. It is estimated that 1 in 4 women will experience domestic abuse, but it is hard to get an accurate estimate given that domestic violence often goes unreported. Youth who witness violence at home are more likely to be victims of domestic or sexual violence as adults. Also, youth who have been sexually abused in early childhood are at a higher risk of being exploited in sex work and engaging in unsafe sex practices later in life. For all of these reasons, counseling against sexual and domestic violence must begin long before adulthood.

October was domestic violence awareness month, so it is an apt time for these conversations to begin, but it should not be where these conversations end. Sexuality education both in classrooms and providers’ offices offer the opportunity to prevent violence before it makes it to TMZ.

Anne Keyworth, Resident Blogger (’16, North Carolina Central University)

Last week we received some news worth raising our hopes for.  The Supreme Court restored the decision of a Texas district court, which found several abortion restrictions, including policies regarding admitting privileges and medically induced abortions, to have an “undue burden” on women.  This effectively allowed 13 abortion clinics to reopen, and is reason to celebrate.  The 6-3 split suggests that the court is cognizant of the gravity of this legislation and is cautious of its potential impact.

However, this fight is not over.  If the law moves forward in its full form, it would pose a serious threat to Texan women’s access to safe abortion facilities.  Worse still, this law could pave the way for other states in the south and across the nation to enact similarly restrictive legislation.

The outcome of this case will largely be based on the interpretation of what an “undue burden” means in the context of abortion restrictions.  There is little precedent on this, and therefore depends on the how the judges at the next level interpret such a phrase, and eventually on the swing votes at the Supreme Court, if it hears the case down the road.  This could lead to a great reproductive justice victory if the courts rule that restrictions on admitting privileges and medically induced abortions are not beneficial to women’s health but rather are placing superfluous obstacles in their path to accessing abortion care.  A favorable ruling at the circuit level would set precedent for the most conservative circuit in the nation, and a ruling at the Supreme Court would set nationwide precedent.  An unfavorable ruling, on the other hand, could open the floodgates to a plethora of destructive legislation that could have devastating effects on women.

To date, the Supreme Court has not addressed the specific issues faced in this suit and, while Justice Kennedy and Chief Justice Roberts voted to restore the district court’s decision and temporarily disallow the restrictions, there is no indication that they would vote to overturn the law and block the restrictions if the case ends up on their docket.  Justice Kennedy, the main swing vote on the court, has not voted to protect abortion rights since Planned Parenthood v.  Casey in 1992; rather, he has voted to uphold 20 of the 21 abortion restrictions that have come before him.

While Texas is in flux, several of their clinics have reopened after the Supreme Court’s ruling last week.  However, some were not able to reopen because they either they believed they would not be able to conform to the new standards or they had already taken irreversible measures in reaction to these standards.  Additionally, the back and forth nature of this legislation has caused a great deal of trouble and anguish for Texas women whose healthcare choices should not be in a constant political sway.  Let’s hope that Texas women will prevail and will not be deprived of access to the full range of safe, legal healthcare options every woman should unquestionably be entitled to.

Rhiannon DiClemente, Resident Blogger (’16, Temple University Beasley School of Law)

Sexuality, a source of pleasure and well-being, is, for many, a central aspect of being human. Over the past twenty years, tremendous strides have been made in the engagement of human rights with sexuality. Despite this progress, global actors—notably the United States—have not accepted a clear definition of sexual rights. As the international community begins to outline the post-2015 sustainable development goals, sexual rights must be enshrined in this new agenda.

Sexual rights embrace human rights that are already recognized in national laws, international human rights documents and consensus statements. The most commonly cited definition of sexual rights was created by the World Health Organization:

[Sexual rights] include the right of all persons, free of coercion, discrimination and violence, to: (1) the highest attainable standard of sexual health, including access to sexual and reproductive health care services; (2) seek, receive and impart information related to sexuality; (3) sexuality education; (4) respect for bodily integrity; (5) choose their partner; (6) decide to be sexually active or not; (7) consensual sexual relations; (8) consensual marriage; (9) decide whether or not, and when, to have children; and (10) pursue a satisfying, safe and pleasurable sexual life.

Sexual rights are a unifying force for important reproductive justice issues and a core element of sustainable development. Claims to sexual rights have emerged from distinct and often disjointed conversations on sexual violence against women, sexual and reproductive health, HIV/AIDS, and LGBT advocacy. Around the globe, new initiatives advancing sexual rights demonstrate the centrifugal forces at work. The Yogyakarta Principles outline rights related to sexual orientation and gender identity; the Latin American and Caribbean Committee for the Defense of Women’s Rights Campaign adopts a feminist analysis of patriarchy; and the International Planned Parenthood Federation declaration adopts a sexual health focus. Acceptance and advancement of sexual rights is essential to combat extreme movements—justified through religion, culture, and nationalism—that seek to impose a narrow view of sexuality and reproduction through laws, policy, and global development work.

Despite the fact that the U.S. government has endeavored to support women raped in conflict and to promote the rights of LGBT persons globally, it has failed to acknowledge that sexual rights exist—let alone advance them. The failure of the U.S. government to accept a definition of sexual rights and promote those rights within foreign policy initiatives undermines its own goals. This is a critical moment for the United States to live up to its promises and protect sexual rights for all. Just as the U.S. took the lead in crafting the definition of reproductive rights agreed to in 1994 at the International Conference on Population and Development, the U.S. must demonstrate leadership on advancing agreements on sexual rights. This is a call to action—U.S. government: ensure that everyone, everywhere, can exercise their freedom to live in dignity—recognize sexual rights!

Amy Krupinski, Resident Blogger (’14, William Mitchell College of Law)

Probably by now, you’ve heard about the MacArthur Foundation Fellows, aka the Genius grant recipients.  If not, you can review the Geniuses here. In my last year of law school, I approached Professor Sarah Deer, who I knew would be teaching my feminist jurisprudence class in the spring semester, about a paper topic that would blend my interests: access to contraceptives and reducing the unintended pregnancy rate with some new element reflective of current needs that hopefully I’d be able to identify with her help. I knew full well she’d steer me in the direction of Native women and their access to emergency contraceptives—I just didn’t anticipate the overall effect it would have on me. Needless to say, from the first book she lent me to begin my research on emergency contraceptive access through Indian Health Services, I became completely invested in the project.

I had spent a lot of time researching emergency contraception access on a state level when I lived in Colorado, so I already knew many of the basics—it’s expensive, it’s often stored behind the counter (if it’s stocked at all), and there is a stigma associated with its acquisition, especially in small towns. I read all the books she loaned to me, dozens of scholarly articles she had collected over the years, and eventually finished a paper that not only am I happy to have researched and written for my own person growth, but in order to take a topic she wanted explored and produce something worth sharing.

Now, I am proud to say that she has molded and shaped my legal education, which I hope to maintain throughout my entire legal career. I would have been proud anyway, but she is an unstoppable force and her work has received (in my opinion) a fraction of the commendation it deserves. Because of her encouragement, insight, and guidance, I know the overall direction I want my career to go, I became a better feminist, and most importantly, I learned from her when to be angry, how to turn that anger into something productive, and when to accept people for who they are.

Anne Keyworth, Resident Blogger (’16, North Carolina Central University)

There are few things more priceless in a democratic society than the notion that our vote is just as valuable and important as the next person’s.  My generation has grown up with a firm understanding of the fact that we have a right to vote, we should vote, and, depending on who we are, we may be encouraged to vote.  We have lived through some historic elections and have indeed witnessed the value each vote can have in battleground states.  For decades, there has been a consistent shift in voting laws and policies, making it easier and more convenient for voters to register and cast their ballot.  Many states now offer early voting and same day registration in an effort to increase voter participation.

But voting rights in many states are currently under attack, and in states like mine, it has become nothing less than a battle to protect every person’s vote.  Voter ID laws and placing limits on early voting are ways many states are working to make it more challenging for certain groups to exercise their right to vote.  Here in North Carolina, a destructive collection of changes to our voting laws were passed in 2013 in merely two days.  Prior to these changes, we had 17 days of early voting, same day registration, allowed for provisional ballots, allowed 17 year olds to register, and did not require a photo identification at the polls.  These are measures that North Carolinians have become accustomed to and that have been heavily relied upon in recent elections.  All of this changed last year and, if left in place, these limitations will have a profound impact on the outcome of our elections and therefore the composition of our state legislature, and potentially the control of the US Senate this year.  What limitations like this do is further marginalize communities of color and low income families, who are already underrepresented and who historically have had more difficulty securing their vote.

These changes are not unique to North Carolina.  They represent a major regression in what had long been a national trend of making voting more accessible, more convenient, and more reachable by more people.  If these efforts are not stopped, they will deeply compromise the integrity of the American political system and the notion that each citizen’s vote is as important as the next.  Entire groups of people will feel as though there are organized efforts to suppress their participation in our democratic process. In a system where our vote is our voice, this will send destructive and polarizing messages to a significant portion of our electorate.

The implications of this year’s election are far reaching, and that’s why I hope that groups like Law Students for Reproductive Justice can mobilize our peers and ensure that people understand and appreciate the value their vote has.  If we show up to the polls, we will show that we are here to fight back and win this battle to protect each person’s vote.