Kenji Yoshino

A week from today, the Supreme Court will hear arguments in Obergefell v. Hodges, the latest case to challenge a same-sex marriage ban.

Same-sex marriage has finally made it to the highest court in the country, as the Supreme Court considers two cases central to how marriage is defined at the state and federal levels....

Kenji Yoshino, Chief Justice Earl Warren Professor of Constitutional Law at NYU, discusses the legal issues associated with gay 'conversion therapy' and various challenges to bans on this type of therapy.

What do these ballot initiatives in Minnesota, Maine, Maryland, and Washington do? And what do they say about the desire of the people, the limits of the law, and the very idea of con...

On Tuesday, a federal appeals court panel ruled that Proposition 8, the voter-approved ban on same-sex marriage which passed into law in 2008, was unconstitutional. This is the first time an appellate court has said there is any kind of constitutional right to marry. But this ruling is still being considered "cautious" by legal experts: Proposition 8 supporters can appeal to the entire 9th circuit, or ask the Supreme Court to take up their case.

NYU law professor Kenji Yoshino, the Chief Justice Earl Warren Professor of Constitutional Law at New York University School of Law, discusses the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals ruling on the constitutionality of Proposition 8 today.

Legal scholar Kenji Yoshino, Chief Justice Earl Warren Professor of Constitutional Law at NYU School of Law, explains how Shakespeare's greatest plays demonstrate what makes a fair and just society and can elucidate some of the most troubling issues in contemporary life. A Thousand Times More Fair: What Shakespeare's Plays Teach Us About Justice addresses fundamental questions we ask about our world today: Why is the rule of law better than revenge? How much mercy should we show a wrongdoer? What does it mean to "prove" guilt or innocence?

The nation has shifted very quickly and I think Obama understands that, and when he talks about his own struggle with these issues, and how he's evolving on these issues in the ...

Kenji Yoshino, Chief Justice Earl Warren Professor of Constitutional Law at NYU School of Law and author of Covering: The Hidden Assault on Our Civil Rights, reacts to the DOJ's decision to stop defending the Defense Of Marriage Act. 

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President Barack Obama declared the Defense Of Marriage Act unconstitutional yesterday, and ordered the Justice Department to no longer defend it. The act, which was signed into law in by President Bill Clinton back in 1996, barred any federal recognition of same-sex marriages. Reactions were split between Democrats and Republicans. House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio), said, "while Americans want Washington to focus on creating jobs and cutting spending the president will have to explain why he thinks now is the appropriate time to stir up a controversial issue that sharply divides the nation."

A federal judge has overturned Proposition 8, the California ballot measure that defines marriage as between one man and one woman.  The measure passed with 52 percent of votes in November 2008. Yesterday, Judge Vaughn Walker ruled it unconstitutional on 14th Amendment grounds of due process and equal protection under the law. 

In a decision that ran more than 100 pages, Judge Vaughn Walker stated that "Proposition 8 fails to advance any rational basis in singling out gay men and lesbians for denial of a marriage license. Indeed, the evidence shows Proposition 8 does nothing more than enshrine in the California Constitution the notion that opposite sex couples are superior to same-sex couples."

The fight over gay marriage resumes in California today with Perry v. Schwarzenegger ... and you may be able to watch it on YouTube, tonight.  Two same sex-couples are suing the enfor...

President Obama said yesterday that he will extend some benefits to the same-sex partners of federal employees. But with the Defense of Marriage Act still in place, how big a step for...

The Supreme Court has set its agenda for the week and will hear arguments on two cases involving civil rights. The first case involves the strip search of a young girl by school admin...

Today, California’s Supreme Court takes up the issue of whether Proposition 8, the ballot initiative that effectively banned gay marriage in that state, is legal or not. The hotly-con...

Kurt talks with law professor Kenji Yoshino, author of Covering: The Hidden Assault On Our Civil Rights, about how we "minstrelize" groups of people, and distort our identities to fit in -- even if it's just concealing a tattoo.

Kurt Andersen talks with law professor Kenji Yoshino, author of Covering: The Hidden Assault On Our Civil Rights, about how we all distort our identities at some point in our lives—even if it's just concealing a tattoo or pretending to like sports.