concentrate exclusively on LGBT issues; it will include discussions of energy, corporate, and tax law. Participants can use the conference as an opportunity to receive up to 12 CLE credits. Additionally, Lavender Law boasts
the largest minority career fair in the nation. Kemnitz describes it as a day-long tabletop event where employers can prove their commitment to including LGBT students in their organization’s culture. Prospective employers are comprised of mostly private fi rms, a smattering of government entities, and the Jag Corps representing the armed services. Private employers participating in the confer- ence are required to include gender identity/expression along with sexual orientation in their nondiscrimination statement. Bill Singer adds: “For anyone of my generation, it’s truly
astounding to see more than 300 recruiters taking the time to recruit young lawyers who are LGBT. When I was young we had to hide our sexuality. After graduating from Columbia I went to work at a fi rm; when I came out, I was summarily thrown out. T ey didn’t want a gay in their fi rm. T is makes Lavender Law’s Career Fair all that much more remarkable to me.” Such declarations are needed to mitigate the formidable
employment challenges transgender attorneys face. Firms are slower in hiring transgender lawyers, a situation that has not improved much since longtime Lavender Law attendee Phyllis Randolph Frye, who is transgender, was unable to fi nd neither a job nor a mentor after graduating from the University of Houston Law School in 1981. Now an associ- ate judge for the City of Houston Municipal Courts (the
Judge Phyllis Frye and Bill Singer are longtime attendees.
fi rst transgender judge appointed in the nation), Frye was instrumental in getting Lavender Law involved in transgender issues. Not long after naming her as an alternate delegate in 1992, the board voted to back a trans inclusive Employment Non-
Discrimination Act (ENDA) at a time when other gay rights organizations were reluctant to include transgender people in their struggle. Frye will speak at the plenary titled “Hardwick to Windsor:
T e Last 25 Years of the LGBT Equality Movement.” “Many who will be in the audience probably weren’t born
when Harcourt [the case that held that sodomy was a crime] came out in ’86. At 65, I have a pretty good picture of history. In my speech at Lavender Law I intend to cover Stonewall and talk about the gender queers and the part they have played in the gay rights movement,” says Frye, who’s known as “the grandmother of the transgender law movement.” Twenty-fi fth anniversaries are a time to celebrate, refl ect on
the past, and look ahead, says Kemnitz. Many believe that the next generation of LGBT legal professionals are safe to come out and secure in their job with nothing to worry about, but that’s not entirely true. ENDA is nowhere near close to passing. A person fi red for being gay has no recourse under current laws regardless of title or position. Much work remains to be done. “T e lawyers who present at and attend Lavender Law
are on the front lines and behind the scenes building on the progress we have made,” Kemnitz continues. “We’re a big part of the current economic and legal landscape within the larger LGBT movement. We’ve built a profes- sional association that provides membership services, career advancement opportunities, and a camaraderie that comes from sharing experiences. One very meaningful part of the conference is our opportunity to pay tribute to the lawyers who paved the way for us today. It’s so important to acknowledge them.” D&B
Patrick Folliard is a freelance writer based in Silver Spring, Md.
MCCA.COM JULY/AUGUST 2013 DIVERSITY & THE BAR®
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