Queers Anonymous: Lesbians, Gay Men, Free Speech, and Cyber Space

Abstract:     
In the past several years, the development and expansion of the Internet and other forms of cyberspace have created new forms of communication around which new communities have developed. Not coincidentally, a disproportionate number of lesbians and gay men and other sexual minorities have taken advantage of these opportunities, and, for many such people, the structure of their communities has changed dramatically as a result. The focus of this paper is on the attempts by the state to regulate cyberspace and how such attempts will impact the speech and communities of gay men, lesbians and others sexual minorities. The central claim is that the speech of sexual minorities in cyberspace deserves special respect and attention; when the state attempts to regulate speech in cyberspace, it needs to take care not to trench on the speech and associational rights of lesbians, gay men, and other sexual minorities.

Number of Pages in PDF File: 76

Accepted Paper Series