Professor Juliet Williams and Professor Abigail Saguy receive award from the Law and Social Science (LSS) and the Sociology programs of the National Science Foundation (NSF)

/ by

Juliet Williams and Abigail Saguy have received a three-year, $325,000 award from the Law and Social Science (LSS) and Sociology programs of the National Science Foundation (NSF) to conduct a study examining the concept of gender neutrality in U.S. law and activism. Since the 1970s, feminist, gay, and transgender advocates have used the term gender neutral to describe diverse alternatives to the binary gender system, and to challenge practices that maintain gender inequality. This study is the first to systematically examine how gender neutrality has been defined by activists and what the principle of gender neutrality has accomplished in the law. Using a multi-method research design that draws on quantitative and qualitative analyses of news media reports, court cases, and in-depth interviews, the project analyzes data from a variety of institutional settings (federal courts, federal statutes, state statutes), popular media coverage (print media stories and op-eds) and political actors (interest groups, social movements, and lawyers). This research will form the basis for several co-authored journal articles and a co-authored book project.Congratulations Juliet and Abigail!!