From the Closet to the Altar: Courts, Backlash, and the Struggle for Same-Sex Marriage
"A fascinating read, full of detail, and an important contribution to our understanding of the legal and political influences on America's fastest moving social change movement."--Richard Socarides, former Clinton White House Special Assistant, attorney and long-time gay rights advocate"Michael Klarman, a distinguished legal historian and constitutional scholar, has written a fascinating and authoritative history of the efforts through litigation to legalize homosexual marriage-efforts that seemed at first fated only to create a backlash against homosexual rights, yet that eventually merged with a surprising evolution of American public opinion in favor of legalization, and may be on the brink of success. His book is indispensable to understanding a legal movement that is being compared to the legal movement to desegregate the South."--Judge Richard A. Posner, United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit"Litigation has played a key role in catalyzing-and helping to win-gay people's struggle to achieve marriage equality.  But these court victories have not been without their political costs.  Michael Klarman assesses these intertwining stories with insight and objectivity, making his book a must-read for anyone interested in how courts shape the trajectories of social movements."--Patrick Egan, New York University"Klarman's historical account is comprehensive, trenchant, and provocative." --The New York Review of Books