Hybrid. Ruth Colker

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       HYBRID

       CRITICAL AMERICA

       Richard Delgado and Jean Stefancic GENERAL EDITORS

      White by Law: The Legal Constructions of Race Ian Haney López

      Cultivating Intelligence: Power, Law, and the Politics of Teaching A Conversation between Louise Harmon and Deborah W. Post

      Privilege Revealed: How Law, Language, and the American Mind-set Uphold the Status Quo Stephanie M. Wildman with Margalynne Armstrong, Adrienne D. Davis, and Trina Grillo

      Does the Law Morally Bind the Poor? or What Good’s the Constitution When You Cant Afford a Loaf of Bread R. George Wright

      Hybrid: Bisexuals, Multiracials, and Other Misfits under American Law Ruth Colker

       HYBRID

       Bisexuals, Multiracials, and Other Misfits under American Law

       RUTH COLKER

      NEW YORK UNIVERSITY PRESS New York and London

      Copyright © 1996 by New York University

      All rights reserved

      Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

      Colker, Ruth.

      Hybrid : bisexuals, multiracials, and other misfits under American law / Ruth Colker.

      p. cm.—(Critical America)

       Includes index.

      Contents: Introduction : living the gap—A bi jurisprudence— Sexual orientation—Gender—Race—Disability—Bipolar injustice : the moral code—Invisible hybrids under the U.S. census.

      ISBN 0–8147-1520–6 (cloth : alk. paper).—ISBN 0–8147-1538–9 (pbk : alk paper)

      1. Discrimination—Law and legislation—United States.

      2. Minorities—Legal status, laws, etc.—United States. 3. United

      States—Race relations. 4. Sexual orientation—United States.

      5. Law—Social aspects—United States. I. Title. II. Series.

      KF4749.C64 1996

      346.7301’3—dc20 95–50157

      [347.30613] CIP

      New York University Press books are printed on acid-free paper, and their binding materials are chosen for strength and durability.

      Manufactured in the United States of America

      10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

      to C. C.-E.

      may she have extraordinary experiences

      living across boundaries

       Contents

       Acknowledgments

       Preface

       1 • Introduction: Living the Gap

       2 • A Bi Jurisprudence

       3 • Sexual Orientation

       4 • Gender

       5 • Race

       6 • Disability

       7 • Bipolar Injustice: The Moral Code

       8 • Invisible Hybrids under the U.S. Census

       Notes

       Index

Acknowledgments

      Many people have assisted with the writing of this book through their inspiration, thoughtful conversations, devoted research, or careful reading of various drafts. The first inspiration came from Professor Ruthann Robson, who encouraged me to develop a “bisexual jurisprudence”—a jurisprudence that eventually broadened to encompass far more than bisexuality. Richard Delgado and Jean Stefancic, editors of the Critical America series, also served as valuable inspiration by offering to publish this work at a very early stage of production. Later inspiration came from the courageous writings of Dean Gregory Howard Williams and Professor Judy Scales-Trent, who have described vividly how it feels to live across the color line. Professor Linda Alcoff not only shared her experiences of living between ethnic categories with others but was gracious enough to offer me encouragement when I spoke with her about my own project.

      Faculty at the University of Pittsburgh School of Law, as well as the students in my classes on constitutional law, feminist theory, and disability discrimination, have engaged in many lively conversations with me regarding these ideas as they developed. In particular, I benefited enormously from two faculty work-in-progress sessions at the School of Law and a symposium held at Yale Law School. Individual faculty members at the University of Pittsburgh also talked extensively with me about many of these ideas, including Jody Armour, Lisa Brush, Martha Chamallas, and Jules Lobel.

      My research assistants were tireless in helping me discover wide-ranging material from the social sciences and law. Namita Luthra, Sharon Noble, Debra Sherman, and Colleen Zak have helped with nearly every idea contained in each chapter. In addition, my colleague, Bernie Hibbitts assisted me in finding valuable historical material on the U.S. Census. The word-processing staff at the School of Law, under the supervision of LuAnn Driscoll, did a marvelous job of polishing the typing, as well as proofreading a lengthy manuscript. Finally,