News is just coming to light of the passing of John G Lawrence this past Nov. 20. He was just 68, his death was from complications of a heart ailment. His partner, Jose Garcia, apparently posted a notice on the web site of the funeral home, but made no mention of what most will remember Mr. Lawrence for: being arrested for having consensual sex with another adult in the privacy of the bedroom in his home. Mr. Lawrence, a quiet man, decided he didn't think this was right, or fair, and fought his arrest all the way to the United States Supreme Court. The case was Lawrence v Texas, and by a 6-3 decision the court agreed this was not right, or fair, and made unconstitutional Texas' Anti-Sodomy law, and laws in 17 other states that still made same sex consensual sex illegal, even in the privacy of one's own bedroom. In short, John G. Lawrence achieved the greatest legal victory for gays and lesbians in the 20th century. Almost every court victory for gay men and lesbian women has been based on the Supreme Court's decision in this case - equal protection under the law applies to ALL citizens, even ones who live a lifestyle we may not like, or approve of.
John Lawrence, left, and Tyron Garner were arrested on Sept. 17, 1998 for having sex in Lawrence's Houston home. A neighbor observed Lawrence returning home with Garner and telephone a report of a "weapons disturbance" in Lawrence's home. The neighbor was later convicted of filing a false police report. When police burst into the home and entered the bedroom they said the observed the two men having sex and arrested them for violating a Texas law prohibiting “deviate sexual intercourse with another individual of the same sex.” The two men were held overnight and each fined $200. Lawrence, a closeted gay man at the time, was upset about how he was treated, physically and personally, that night. He decided to fight, and he took the fight all the way to the Supreme Court.
According to his attorneys, Mr. Lawrence attended the Supreme Court argument in his case, mingling with the people who had waited in line all night to see it, alive with excitement, pride and a sense of history. A quiet man by nature, he was willing to be the face of injustice. Years later in an interview Mr. Lawrence reflected on his case “Why should there be a law passed that only prosecutes certain people?” he asked. “Why build a law that only says, ‘Because you’re a gay man you can’t do this. But because you’re a heterosexual, you can do the same thing’?”
Why indeed? I salute you John, for your courage, and thank you for fighting for fairness and justice. I've always admired you - no Harvey Milk, just a quiet guy who decided that when the police can break into your home and arrest you for doing something that is perfectly legal for a man and a woman to do, something isn't right.
Mr. Lawrence's death only came to light when a lawyer in the case, Mitchell Katine, tried to reach him with an invitation to an event commemorating the ruling.