PAISLEY  CURRAH

Office:
Department of Political Science Brooklyn College, CUNY
2900 Bedford Avenue, New York 11210
Tel: 718-951-4148
Email: pcurrah@brooklyn.cuny.edu
Home:
214 Greene Ave., Apt. 1
Brooklyn, NY 11238

Employment

Associate Professor, Department of Political Science, Brooklyn College of The City University of New York, January 1999 - present.

Assistant Professor, Department of Political Science, Brooklyn College of The City University of New York, September 1994 - December 1998.

 Education

Ph.D. in Government, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York, August 1994.

M.A. in Government, Cornell University, January 1992.

 B.A. (Honours) in Political Science, First Class. Queen's University at Kingston, Ontario, October 1987.

Book

Not the United States of Gender: Identity in the Civil Rights Claims of Sexual Minorities, forthcoming with Temple University Press.

In Progress:

Transgender Rights: History, Politics, and Law, eds. Paisley Currah, Shannon Minter, and Richard Juang. (Forthcoming with University of Minnesota Press)

 Articles

“Gender Pluralisms.” In Transgender Rights: Culture, Politics, and Law, eds. Paisley Currah, Shannon Minter, and Richard Juang (forthcoming with University of Minnesota Press).

"The Transgender Rights Imaginary," forthcoming in the Georgetown Journal of Gender and the Law (2003).

"Queer Theory, Lesbian and Gay Rights, and Transsexual Marriages," in Identity/Space/Power, ed. Mark Blasius (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2001.

“Unprincipled Exclusions: The Struggle for Legislative and Judicial Protections for Transgendered People,” co-authored with Shannon Minter.  College of William and Mary Journal of Women  and the Law, Vol. &, Issue 1, Fall 2000.

 "Sex and Gender Non-Conformity in the Civil Rights Strategies of Sexual Minorities," Hastings Law Journal, August 1997.

"Practices, Politics, Publics: Identity and Queer Rights," in Playing with Fire. Edited by Shane Phelan. New York: Routledge, 1997.

"Searching for Immutability: Homosexuality, Race, and Rights Discourse." In A Simple Matter of Justice. Edited by Angelia R. Wilson. London: Cassell Press, 1995.

  Other publications

Paisley Currah and Shannon Minter, Transgender Rights: A Handbook for Activists and Policy-Makers, New York: National Center for Lesbian Rights and the Policy Institute of the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, 2000.

"Human Rights," for the Encyclopedia of Homosexuality: Lesbian Histories and Cultures, 2nd ed., Edited by Bonnie Zimmerman, New York: Garland, 2000.

"European Enlightenment," for the Encyclopedia of Homosexuality: Lesbian Histories and Cultures, 2nd ed., Edited by Bonnie Zimmerman, New York: Garland, 2000.

Symposium remarks on "Gender Theory and Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgendered Empowerment," Fordham Urban Law Journal, Vol. 23 (2), December 1999.

Reviews

Review of Joanne Meyerowitz, How Sex Changed: A History of Transsexuality in the U.S. Women's Review of Books, February 2003.

Review of Grace Chang, Disposable Domestics: Immigrant Women Workers and the Global Economy. Women’s Review of Books, October 2000.

Review of Murray Jardine, Speech and Political Practice. American Political Science Review, Vol. 93 (4), December 1999.

Review of Annamarie Jagose, Lesbian Utopics, and Mark Blasius, Gay and Lesbian Politics. Women and Politics, Vol. 18 (2), 1997.

Review of Shane Phelan, Getting Specific, Women's Caucus Newsletter (Winter 1996).

Review of Martha Banta, Imaging American Women, and Nancy F. Cott, The Grounding of Modern Feminism. Queen's Quarterly 96 (Summer 1989): 568-570.

Review of Feminism and Political Economy: Women's Work, Women's Struggles. Edited by Heather Jon Maroney and Meg Luxton. Canadian Women's Studies 10 (Spring 1989): 128-29.

Review of Kim Chernin, Reinventing Eve: Modern Women in Search of Herself, and Beryl Benderly, The Myth of Two Minds: What Gender Means and Doesn't Mean. The Whig-Standard Magazine, December 3, 1988.

Review of Carole Jerome, The Man in the Mirror: A True Story of Love, Revolution and Treachery in Iran, and Sousan Azadi, Out of Iran: A Woman's Escape from the Ayatollahs. The Whig-Standard Magazine, November 7, 1987.

Review of Phyllis Chesler, Mothers on Trial: The Battle for Children and Custody. The Whig-Standard Magazine, August 22, 1987.

Awards, fellowships and grants

Wayne F. Placek Award, American Psychological Foundation, September 2002.  
One of two scholars chosen nationally for a $30,000 award to support two years of research investigating federal and state judicial opinions and briefing materials involving transgender plaintiffs and the construction of gender in the law.

Sabbatical, Brooklyn College, Spring 2003, Spring 2002. To support work on two book manuscripts under contract with Temple University Press and University of Minnesota Press.

Fellow, Wolfe Institute for the Humanities, 1999-2000.
Released time from teaching for a year to expand my research on civil rights claims and sexual minorities.

PSC-CUNY Research Award, 2002.

PSC-CUNY Research Award, 2001.

PSC-CUNY Research Award, 2000.

PSC-CUNY Research Award, 1998.

PSC-CUNY Research Award, 1996.

Mellon Doctoral Fellowship, 1993-94.

Beatrice Brown Award in Women's Studies, Cornell University, Summer 1992.

Mellon Doctoral Fellowship, Spring 1992.

Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada Doctoral Fellowship, 1989-90, 1990-91, Fall 1991, 1992-93.

Teaching and research interests

Sexuality, gender, queer and transgender studies
Identity claims of sexual minorities in U.S. civil rights discourse
Contemporary feminist, liberal, and democratic political theory

Invited Talks

“Infusing LGBT Knowledges and Perspectives into the Curriculum,” Syracuse University, March 26, 2003.

“Not the United States of Gender: Identity, Expression, and Transgender Civil Rights” presented at:

 the CUNY Academy for the Humanities and the Sciences, April 11, 2002.

the LGBT Studies Speaker Series as a colloquium, Yale University, February 19, 2002.

“Gender Pluralisms: Narrating Transgender Identity in the Courts.” Inaugural Conference of the Center for the Study of Sexual Culture. UC Berkeley, March 8, 2002

"Transgender Rights:  The Emergence of a New Political Movement” presented with co-author Shannon Minter at:

 Cornell University School of Law, January 30, 2002

  Wells College, February 1, 2002

"Transgender Rights in the 21st Century,” presented with co-author Shannon Minter at Ithaca College, January 31, 2002.

“Gender, Sexuality, and Homophobia: What are the Connections,” Kingsborough Community College, Brooklyn, NY, October 16, 2001.

 “Crossing State Lines: Anomalies in legal constructions of the relation between gender and sex,” Oņati Institute for the Sociology of Law, Spain, June 2000.

 “Legislating Genders: Identity, expression, and transgender civil rights,” New School University, April 20, 2000.

“Transgender Legal Issues,” Smith College, March 4, 2000

 “Laws, Texts, and Bodies: The Legal Construction of Sex,” University of Texas at Austin, April 8, 1999.

"Dis-establishing Gender," Transpositions, Cornell University, March 27-29, 1998.

"So Why Can't Butches and Fems Get Married? The Transgender Sex Wars," presented at the Colloquium Series in Lesbian and Gay Studies, CLAGS, City University of New York, November 6, 1997.

"Sex and Gender Non-Conformity in the Civil Rights Strategies of Sexual Minorities," presented at the the Hastings College of Law Symposium, "Intersexions: The Legal and Social Construction of Sexual Orientation," March 29, 1997, San Francisco, California.

 

Conference Papers and Panel Presentations

Invited panelist, “The Transgender Rights Imaginary,” CUNY Law School, March 10, 2003.

Invited panelist, “Legal Constructions of Sex and Gender: Whose Crisis Is It?,” Queen’s College, CUNY, February 26th, 2003.

Invited panelist, “Gender Identity, The Intersexed and Transsexuals: An Introduction to Religious, Legal and Policy Issues,” Reconstructionist Rabbinical College, Philadelphia, PA, February 11, 2003

“Gender non-conforming youth take on the state: recent free expression claims in school cases,” National Gay and Lesbian Law Association annual meeting, Philadelphia, PA, November 2003.

“Trans Matters: Law, Gender Identity, and the Public.”   Flash Points, Center for Women’s Studies, University of Texas at Austin, October 18-19, 2002.

“Narrating Transgender Identities in the U.S. Courts,” presented at the annual meeting of the Law and Society Association, Vancouver, BC, May 30-June 2, 2002 and the Berkshire Conference on the History of Women, June 6-10th, Storrs, CT, 2002.

Invited Panelist, “Crossing Boundaries, Redefining Gender: A New Front on Equality,” Georgetown Law School Symposium of Gender and Sexuality, Washington, D.C.,  to be presented February 27, 2002.

Invited Panelist, “Transgender Civil Rights,” Hebrew Union College, New York City, February 12, 2002.

Organizer, “Transgender Law and Policy Roundtable,” December 7-8, 2001, Center for Lesbian and Gay Studies, Graduate Center of the City University of New York.

Invited Panelist, “Rethinking Gender, Sexuality, and Women’s Studies,” October 12, 2001, The Graduate School and University Center, City University of New York.

“Sexing Bodies: The Policy Quagmires Faced by Transgender People,” presented at the annual meeting of the American Political Science Association, San Francisco, CA, August 30-September 2, 2001.

Invited Panelist, “The Civil Rights of Transgender People,” Association of the Bar of the City of New York, June 6, 2001.

Invited Panelist, “Gender Law Institute Roundtable,” Georgetown Journal of Gender and the Law, May 18, 2001.

Invited Panelist, “Currents in Transgender Legislation and Litigation,” Fordham University Law School, April 25, 2001.

Invited Panelist, “Queer Theory and the Law School Academy,” Annual Conference of the Lesbian and Gay Law Association of Greater New York, Columbia University Law School, February 24, 2001.

“Legislative Update: Transgender-Inclusive Non-Discrimination Laws,” Annual Meeting of the National Lesbian and Gay Law Association, Washington, DC, October 19-22, 2000.

“Transgender Bodies and the Legal Construction of Sex,” American Studies Association, Detroit, Detroit, Michigan, October 12-15, 2000.

“Transgender Equality: Securing Civil Rights Through Legislation,” Forth International Congress on Sex and Gender, Philadelphia, October 6-9, 2000.

"Do Transsexuals Dream of Gay Rights? The Struggle to Secure Legal Protections Without Legislating Identities," co-authored with Shannon Minter, presented at the annual meeting of the Law and Society Association, May 26-29, 2000, Miami Beach.

"From the State to the Street: Trans-disciplinary and Transgender Politics," presented at the annual meeting of the Modern Languages Association, Chicago, Illinois, December 27-30, 1999.

"Securing Civil Rights Protections For Transgendered And Transsexual People:  An Overview Of Existing Statutes And Legislative Strategies," presented at:

the annual meeting of the National Lesbian and Gay Lawyers Association, Seattle, Washington, October 22-24, 1999.

Creating Change, the annual meeting of the National Lesbian and Gay Task Force, November 10-13, 1999.

“Legislating Genders,” presented at the annual meeting of the American Political Science Association, Atlanta, GA, September 2-5, 1999.

Panelist on “Transgender Legal Issues,” City University of New York School of Law at Queen’s College, April 15, 1999.

Panelist on the question of “Gender Theory and L/G/B/T/ Empowerment,” Queer Law 1999, annual meeting of the Lesbian and Gay Law Association of Greater New York, Fordham University School of Law, February 6, 1999.

“Dis-Establishing Gender,” presented at:

the International Conference on Gender, Sexuality, and Law, Keele University, 19-21 June, 1998.

the annual meeting of the American Political Science Association, Boston, September 3-6, 1998.

"The Politics of Same-Sex Marriage," roundtable at the Western Political Science Association 1998 Annual Meeting, Los Angeles, California, March 19-21, 1998.

"Transgendering Rights," presented at the 1997 Annual Meeting of the American Political Science Association, Washington, 1997.

"Gender Identity Disorder: Some Legal Implications for Transgender and Queer Rights," International Conference on Transgender Law and Employment Policy, July 11-12, 1997, Houston, Texas.

"Defending our Genders: Homosexuality, Gender Identity, and the Reproduction of Cultures," presented at:

the 1997 meeting of the Law and Society Association, St. Louis, Missouri, May 29-June 1, 1997;

Relatively Speaking: A Conference on Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Families, May 3-4, 1997, New York University.

"Rethinking `the Political' through Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgendered Politics," presented at the 1996 Annual Meeting of the American Political Science Association, San Francisco Hilton and Towers, August 29-September 1, 1996.

"Queer Practices, Queer Identities, and Queer Rights," presented at the 1996 Meeting of the Law and Society Association, 10 July-13 July, 1996, Glasgow, Scotland.

"Liberalism, Rights, and the Public Sphere," presented at the American Political Science Association Annual Meeting, Chicago, Illinois, August 31-September 3, 1995.

"Queers, Identity Politics, and Evans v. Romer," to be presented at the Annual Meeting of the Western Political Science Association, Portland, Oregon, March 16-19, 1995.

"Special Rights/Queer Rites: Colorado's Amendment 2," presented at the Sixth Annual North American Lesbian and Gay Studies Association, Iowa City, Iowa, November 17-20, 1994.

"Practices, Politics, Publics: The Constitution of Sexual Minorities," presented at the 1994 American Political Science Association Annual Meeting, New York, NY, September 1-4, 1994.

"Identity Politics Redux: Agency and Immutability in Sexual Orientation Case Law," American Political Science Association Annual Meeting, Washington, DC, September 1993.

"Equal Protection After Bowers: Attending to the Process," New York State Political Science Association Annual Meeting, New York, April 1993 and "Strategies of Critique VII," York University, Toronto, April 1993.

"Sexuality in Civic Republican Discourse: Myths of Community, Myths of Organicism, and Myths of Artificiality," American Political Science Association Annual Meeting, Chicago, September 1992, and "(Re)presenting the Political," York University, Toronto, April 1992.

Professional service and affiliations

Coordinator, Women’s Studies Program, Brooklyn College, September 2000-January  2003.

Board of Directors, Center for Lesbian and Gay Studies, The Graduate Center of the City University of New York, 1998-present. Chair, CLAGS Futures of the Field Conference,  April 2001. Curator, CLAGS Colloquium Series in Lesbian and Gay Studies, 1999-2000. 

Member, American Political Science Association, 1988-present. Member, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Gay Caucus of the American Political Science Association, 1991-present.

Member, Law and Society Association, 1996-present.

Member, The Harry Benjamin International Gender Dysphoria Association, Inc., 2000-present. Legal Committee.

National Programming Co-chair, 1999 annual meeting of the National Lesbian and Gay Law Association, October 22-24, 1999, Seattle, Washington.

Co-chair, Center for Lesbian and Gay Studies of the City University of New York conference, "Identity/Place/Power: Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Politics," February 8 and 9, 1996.

Women's Studies Steering Committee, Brooklyn College, 1995-present.

Discussant and panel chair, "Territorial Imaginations: Symbolic Space and Cultural Identity" of the 1997 meeting of the Law and Society Association, St. Louis, Missouri, May 29-June 1, 1997.

Panelist, "Issues of Inclusion and Recognition," at the Second Annual Domestic Partner Benefits Conference, Baruch College of the City University of New York, October 5 and 6, 1995.

Research grant reviewer for PSC/CUNY awards: women’s studies and political science panels, 1994-present.

Selected Community Service

Founder of the Transgender Law and Policy Institute, July 2000.

Legislative work:

Litigation and Legislation Task Forces of the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force’s Transgender Policy Initiative, 2000-present.

Founding member, New York Association for Gender Rights Advocacy (NYAGRA), 1998-2001.

Member, New York City Legislative Work Group to amend the Human Rights Law.

Member, legislative drafting subcommittee of the Dignity for Students Coalition (New York State).

Media Work: Guest Commentator, “Kantaras v. Kantaras,” Court TV, January 29, 2002.  Interviews with WBAI FM, AP Wire, Miami Herald, Tampa Tribune, GenderTalk Web Radio, “The Other Side” on XM RADIO 169, Gay City News, New York Blade.

Guest speaker, “Updates on Transgender Law and Policy,” LGBT student group brown bag lunch series, New York University School of Law, December 2001. 

Invited Panelist, “Should Prostitution be Decriminalized?,” New York University School of Law, October 2, 2001.

Guest speaker, “Civil Rights,” Gender Identity Project of the Lesbian and Gay Community Services Center of New York, February, 2001.

Panelist on topic of “Policing Gender,” sponsored by the Rape Crisis/Anti-Violence Support Center, Queer Awareness Month, and the Barnard Center for Research on Women, Columbia University, October 24, 2000.

Guest speaker on the topic of “Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender: Common visions, common problems, common threads in the fabric of our community,” at the LOFT, Westchester County's LGBT center, October 5th, 2000.

Leader of “Transgender Politics,” a “seminar in the city” reading group in lesbian and gay studies for area non-academics interested in the topic. Fall 1999.

Guest speaker, "Body and Soul," the 5th Annual Transgender/Transexual Health Empowerment Conference, The Lesbian & Gay Community Services Center, New York, NY, November 6, 1999. 

Founding member, Ithaca AIDS Coalition to Unleash Power (ACT UP), 1989-1994. 

Founding member, Ithaca Queer Nation, 1990-1994.

Volunteer hot-line worker and residence worker, Tompkins County Task Force for Battered Women, Ithaca, 1989-1993.