Human Rights Campaign Expresses Disappointment on Judiciary Committee Vote on Leslie Southwick
For Immediate Release:
Thursday, Aug. 2, 2007
HUMAN RIGHTS CAMPAIGN EXPRESSES DISAPPOINTMENT ON JUDICIARY COMMITTEE VOTE ON LESLIE SOUTHWICK
‘The Judiciary Committee’s duty is to ensure that only fair-minded individuals, committed to civil rights for all Americans, are permitted to serve lifetime appointments to our federal courts,’ said Human Rights Campaign President Joe Solmonese.
WASHINGTON — Today the Senate Judiciary Committee approved, by a vote of 10 to 9, the nomination of Judge Leslie Southwick to the United States Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit. Southwick has a disturbing record on equal rights, having participated in a decision removing an 8-year-old child from the biological mother due in part to the mother’s sexual orientation. This vote brings Southwick one step closer to a lifetime position on the federal bench.
“The Judiciary Committee’s duty is to ensure that only fair-minded individuals, committed to civil rights for all Americans, are permitted serve lifetime appointments to our federal courts,” said Human Rights Campaign President Joe Solmonese. “The courts of appeal make decisions that are critical to our lives. Judge Southwick has demonstrated a willingness to base the most important decision imaginable — separating a parent from her child — upon anti-gay prejudice. He is unfit to serve on the court, and we strongly encourage the full Senate to reject his nomination.”
Below is HRC’s letter in opposition to the nomination of Judge Southwick:
May 23, 2007
Re: Leslie Southwick
Dear Members of the Committee on the Judiciary:
I am writing on behalf of the Human Rights Campaign and our 700,000 members and supporters to oppose the nomination Leslie Southwick to the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit. As a Mississippi judge, Southwick demonstrated a serious lack of understanding of gay people and families. His statements during his hearing before this committee and his written responses to your questions do not satisfy us that his positions have evolved nor that he would fairly judge cases involving the rights of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender Americans.
During his tenure on the Mississippi Court of Appeals, Judge Southwick (now in private practice) participated in a custody case involving a lesbian mother. The majority decision, which Southwick joined, took an 8-year-old child from the mother, citing in part that the mother had a “lesbian home.” The opinion further denigrates what it calls the “homosexual lifestyle” and the “lesbian lifestyle.”
More disturbingly, Judge Southwick joined a concurrence written by Judge Payne completely unnecessary to effectuate the result that emphasized Mississippi’s public policy against lesbian and gay parents (using only the term “homosexuals”). Judge Southwick was the only judge in the majority to join Judge Payne’s concurrence, which is rife with misconceptions and biases.
The concurrence does not even refer to gay individuals, but rather focuses on “the practice of homosexuality.” It then cites Mississippi’s law prohibiting same-sex couples from adopting children — even though this was not an adoption case, but rather a case regarding a biological mother’s right to retain custody of her child. The opinion even goes so far as to cite the state’s sodomy law (subsequently invalidated by the Supreme Court’s decision in Lawrence v. Texas).
Perhaps most troublingly, the concurrence states that even if the mother’s sexual acts are her choice, she must accept the fact that losing her child is a possible consequence of that “choice.” This statement underscores Judge Southwick’s disregard for commonly accepted psychiatric and social science conclusions. The American Psychological Association has made clear that sexual orientation is not a choice. The APA, along with every other credible psychological and child welfare group, has also concluded that lesbian and gay people are equally successful parents as their heterosexual counterparts. This disregard for widely accepted social science conclusions has ramifications not only for cases involving gay and lesbian people, but also in any case where respect for science comes into play — whether this involves reproductive choice, people with disabilities, environmental studies, to name a few.
No parent should face the loss of a child simply because of who they are. If he believes that losing a child is an acceptable “consequence” of being gay, Judge Southwick cannot be given the responsibility to protect the basic rights of gay and lesbian Americans.
When questioned before this committee about why he joined this offensive concurrence, Southwick gave the unsatisfactory response that he did not write it. He further stated that the concurrence reflected Mississippi’s public policy, but did not indicate why he joined the concurrence that his colleagues deemed unnecessary. He did not distance himself from the concurrence or the language that it contains.
In his written responses to questions about this case and about the rights of gay and lesbian Americans, Southwick did not provide adequate reassurance that his position has changed or that his understanding has evolved. Although he repeatedly indicated that Lawrence v. Texas is now controlling precedent, having overruled Bowers v. Hardwick, this is an insufficient answer. Although we are hopeful that Lawrence will bring about greater equality for GLBT Americans, Southwick’s promise to adhere to that precedent does not address the question of whether he believes that gay people should have the same parenting rights as others.
The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit has historically paved the way for civil rights advances. We believe that Judge Southwick’s nomination is inconsistent with this important legacy, and would turn back the tide of progress by denying equal protections to GLBT Americans. We therefore oppose his nomination and request that you vote against his confirmation. Only a judge who has demonstrated that he can be a fair and impartial judge for all Americans, regardless of their sexual orientation, is entitled to confirmation on this important court.
Sincerely,
Allison Herwitt
Human Rights Campaign Legislative Director
The Human Rights Campaign is America’s largest civil rights organization working to achieve gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender equality. By inspiring and engaging all Americans, HRC strives to end discrimination against GLBT citizens and realize a nation that achieves fundamental fairness and equality for all.
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