Sodomy Laws: Institutionalized

Oppression Against Sexual Minorities

Talking Points

Sodomy laws were once on the books in all 50 states and Puerto Rico, but they have been repealed or struck down by courts in 32 states. Recently, in 2003, the United States Supreme Court voided all sodomy laws; the court concluded that the government has no place in the private bedrooms of consenting adults and that all people should be treated with fairness, equality and respect.

YFFN will be working with a coalition of other progressive organizations in Idaho to request the state legislature to repeal this antiquated law.

Although the U. S. Supreme Court has made Idaho’s sodomy law unenforceable for private consensual sex, it is still retained on the books and can be used for increasing the penalty for forced or public sex.  We do not condone either of these acts and feel that maintaining the sodomy law on Idaho’s books will result in unequal punishments being applied to gay men as they traditionally have been. 

Consider that public sex between a heterosexual couple, not engaged in oral or anal sex will receive a lesser sentence than a homosexual couple caught in a similar situation.  The latter may be charged with a felony and face a sentence of over five years in prison!

Rape, male rape, lewd conduct with minors, as well as public sexual behavior, all carry separate and serious criminal penalties; it is not necessary to continue the "infamous crime against nature" to prohibit these offenses.

Background

Sodomy statutes generally prohibit oral and anal sex, even between consenting adults. While most sodomy laws (including Idaho's) apply to both heterosexual and homosexual sexual acts, and they are rarely, if ever, prosecuted, they are nevertheless used to deny lesbians and gay men a range of other rights.