The California Supreme Court Historical Society will present a program about Perez v. Sharp (1948) 32 Cal.2d 711, where a divided court held to be unconstitutional Civil Code statutes prohibiting inter-racial marriages. The decision preceded the U.S. Supreme Court’s Loving v. Virginia (1967) 388 U.S. 1 opinion by almost two decades. The high Court noted that California’s Supreme Court was “[t]he first state court to recognize that miscegenation statutes violate the Equal Protection Clause.” (Loving, 388 U.S. at p. 6, fn. 5.)
The November 16 noon webinar is free and will offer an hour of MCLE credit.
As described by the Society, “This program briefly sketches the history of racial discrimination in California and elsewhere, then turns its focus to how marriage illuminated a path for later, important civil rights cases. The heart of the presentation addresses the recognition of bias and the legal theories that concern its elimination. The case also touches on marriage equality – as the issue was framed in 1947-1948.”
Supreme Court Justice Joshua Groban will introduce the program, Court of Appeal Justice Teri Jackson and John Caragozian will be the narrators, and Roland Brandel and Michael Traynor will provide additional remarks.
Registration is here.
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