Sasha Issenberg (he/him) in conversation with Monica Meyer (she/they/any)
In the 2023 MLBA Conference keynote session, Sasha Issenberg and Monica Meyer will discuss in detail the legal strategies used in Minnesota and throughout the United States to secure marriage equality for all LGBTQ people. The story begins in Hawaii where, on December 17, 1990, three same-sex couples applied for marriage licenses in Honolulu. Less than three years later, the Hawaii Supreme Court released its decision in Baehr v. Lewin concluding that the freedom to marriage was a basic civil right. Lawsuit by lawsuit, the story proceeds until, on June 16, 2016, the Supreme Court invalidated same-sex marriage bans across the land in Obergefell v. Hodges. Sasha and Monica will navigate each step of the story to illuminate how attorneys interacted with the larger social movement toward LGBTQ equality.
This session will also examine the role that race played (and continues to play) in legal activism for the queer community. Particular attention will be paid to trans and non-binary participation in the decades leading up to Obergefell, as well as the populations of people that mainstream legal organizations and groups may have left behind. Sasha and Monica will end the session by drawing out lessons from the marriage fight for those looking to make changes in other areas of the law.
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Sasha Issenberg (he/him)
Sasha Issenberg is the author of three previous books, on topics ranging from the global sushi business to medical tourism and the science of political campaigns. He covered the 2008 election as a national political reporter in the Washington bureau of The Boston Globe, the 2012 election for Slate, the 2016 election for Bloomberg Politics and Businessweek, and 2020 for The Recount. He is the Washington correspondent for Monocle, and has also written for New York magazine, The New York Times Magazine, and George, where he served as a contributing editor. He teaches in the political science department at UCLA.
Monica Meyer (she/they/any)
Monica Meyer has been leading organizing, activism and policy advocacy on behalf of issues of equity and justice since 1992. She joined the staff of OutFront Minnesota as Public Policy Director in 2001 and became Executive Director in 2010, continuing her work to enact policies and practices for LGBTQ equity. In 2011, Monica co-founded Minnesotans United for All Families, the campaign that successfully defeated the constitutional amendment to ban the freedom to marry for same-sex in 2012 and then enact marriage equality through the MN Legislature in 2013. Since leaving OutFront Minnesota in 2021, Monica has been a consultant working with workplaces on LGBTQ inclusion, supporting nonprofit grassroots fundraising efforts with Innovative Consulting, LLC, and, recently, becoming Gender Justice’s Interim Advocacy Director.
Some of her recent recognition includes HRC’s Brian Coyle Award, Humphrey Institute’s Public Leadership Award, and the Lynx’s Inspiring Women Award, Monica received her master’s degree in public policy from the Humphrey Institute at the University of Minnesota, and her undergraduate degree from Hamline University. Monica is constantly inspired by courageous people she meets who work tirelessly for LGBTQ equity and racial and gender justice.
