Raymond Hornstein, one of Professor Birdsong’s brightest students, has written an interesting and provocative paper concerning the Fourteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. Does it provide equal protection for all — or just for some? Mr. Hornstein has given me permission to post his work on my blog. Read and enjoy.
The Fourteenth Amendment; Equal Protection for Some:
In regards to the rights of Homosexuals in the United States
Raymond H. Hornstein
I. Introduction
Section 1 of the United States Constitution clearly states: All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside. No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws (Emphasis added).[1]
The Fourteenth Amendment came as one of the Reconstruction Amendments and was adopted in June of 1868 in an attempt to guarantee certain protections for the recently emancipated slaves at the end of the Civil War. The Amendment went on to be the justification for the repeal of American segregation in the landmark decision of Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka[2] , as well as guaranteeing equal rights to women under the Equal Pay Act of 1963.[3]
The Fourteenth Amendment has gone on to become the one of the most cited
