South Texas College of Law Houston joins national celebration of Pride Month this June. For years, alumni and faculty have played a significant role in advancing LGBTQ+ rights, both in Houston and across the nation, and our welcoming campus has an active student organization for LGBTQ+ students and their allies.
Members of the South Texas Law community have served as advocates, litigators, judges, public officials, and civic leaders who helped shape legal and social progress for LGBTQ+ individuals. Their contributions reflect the institution’s dedication to equal justice under the law, to civil rights protections, and to the broader movement for LGBTQ+ equality.
Alumnus Fights for LGBTQ+ Rights
South Texas Law Board Member and alumnus Mitchell Katine, who earned his J.D. degree in 1985, is the founding partner of Katine Nechman McLaurin LLP. A year after he graduated from law school, the U.S. Supreme Court issued a decision in Bowers v. Hardwick that deprived LGBT individuals of their constitutional rights related to private, consensual intimate relations.
Katine served as local counsel for John Lawrence and Tyron Garner in the landmark U.S. Supreme Court case of Lawrence v. Texas. He is particularly proud of his role this case, in which the Supreme Court overruled the case of Bowers v. Hardwick and overturned all sodomy statutes in the country.
Since the early days of the HIV/AIDS crisis, Katine has been a stalwart leader in the battle to help those with HIV/AIDS. He also helped create numerous LGBT legal organizations in Houston and Texas, and he regularly appears on local and national TV and radio programs where issues such as same-sex marriage, gay and lesbian adoption, HIV/AIDS, and civil rights are discussed and debated.
Among his many awards, Mitchell has received the Humanitarian Award from the Houston Conference on AIDS in America, the Advocacy Award from the Bar Association for Human Rights of Greater Houston, the State Bar of Texas’s Frank J. Scurlock Award and Judge Norman Black Award, a Community Service Award for Outstanding Citizenship from Houston’s ABC affiliate Channel 13, an award as “Top Attorney” from H Magazine, the John Walzel Political Equality Award from the Human Rights Campaign, and an award as Outstanding Civil Rights Attorney from the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.
National LGBTQ+ Law Leadership Through Board Service
South Texas Law Associate Professor Ryan H. Nelson was appointed in 2023 to the Board of Directors for the National LGBTQ+ Bar Association, an association of legal professionals and affiliated organizations dedicated to promoting justice in and through the legal profession for the LGBTQ+ community.
The National LGBTQ+ Bar Association was instrumental in the passage of several key resolutions in the American Bar Association’s House of Delegates. All resolutions focused on the basic principle of equality under the law, and Resolution 113A and Resolution 108D served as a basis for legislation both in individual states and in the U.S. Congress.
“It’s a privilege to serve the LGBTQ+ community at this crucial time when we are fighting for our basic human dignity here in Texas and beyond,” Nelson said. “Pride began not as a celebration, but as a political and cultural uprising where queer people and their allies demanded equality. Pride Month is an annual reminder of that sustained call to action.”
Nelson will be attending the National LGBTQ+ Bar Association’s Lavender Law Conference & Career Fair in Chicago this July. This year’s conference includes a full-day Queer Legal Scholarship Symposium featuring cutting-edge legal scholarship from scholars across the country.
A Campus Community for LGBTQ+ Students and Allies
OutLaw, formerly known as AMICUS, is a South Texas College of Law Houston student organization that educates, advises, and informs its members and the STCL Houston community about issues and concerns, particularly in the practice of law, that affect lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ+) people.
Since its formation in 1994, the organization has served to establish a greater voice and respect for LGBTQ+ people at the law school. By providing a forum that brings LGBTQ+ students into contact not only with each other, but also with other faculty, administrators, staff, and alumni who share their goals, OutLaw promotes an enhanced sense of LGBTQ+ community at South Texas Law.
The law school community, in general, benefits from the social and educational programs that OutLaw sponsors, both independently and in conjunction with other student organizations.
Contact the organization’s leadership at amicusatstcl@gmail.com.
LGBTQ+ Related Executive and Legislative Documents
The U.S. Law Library of Congress has compiled guides to commemorative observations, including a comprehensive inventory of the Public Laws, Presidential Proclamations and congressional resolutions related to Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual Transgender and Queer Pride Month. Find this information here.
Selected Legal Milestones Noted in Pride Month
This list located here is a starting point for external resources focused on landmark and historic rulings related to issues of gender identity, sexuality, and the law. This list is by no means comprehensive, but it provides a starting point for legal research on the topic.
ACLU Fights Anti-LGBTQ+ Bills; Active Campus ACLU Chapter
While celebrating queer joy and community resilience, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) uses the month to campaign against hundreds of anti-LGBTQ+ bills nationwide. The ACLU’s current priorities are to end discrimination, harassment and violence toward transgender people, to close gaps in our federal and state civil rights laws, to prevent protections against discrimination from being undermined by a license to discriminate, and to protect LGBTQ people in and from the criminal legal system.
The ACLU at South Texas College of Law Houston, an official student organization, promotes discussion and awareness of civil liberties issues and works to safeguard civil liberties, including those of LGTBQ+ individuals. It is an official chapter of the ACLU of Texas, which is an affiliate of the national ACLU. Membership is open to all current students, faculty, and staff of the law school, regardless of age, creed, race, color, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or gender expression, disability, national origin, or status as a veteran.
Educating Leaders in Law to Fight for Equal Rights
As we celebrate Pride Month, we also celebrate the students, alumni, faculty, and advocates who have helped advance LGBTQ+ justice in Houston and beyond. Their contributions reflect the law school’s enduring commitment to fostering a legal profession that serves and represents all people. Pride Month offers an opportunity to both honor this history and recognize that the work of building a more tolerant future is not yet done.
The entire South Texas Law community works together to create an environment where all students feel welcomed, respected, and empowered to succeed. Whether you are a prospective student, a current student, an alumnus, or a supporter of the law school, we invite you to learn more about the individuals and milestones highlighted in this story, and to continue carrying forward their legacy.
If you are a current student looking to get involved and find community on campus, we encourage you to reach out to OutLaw or the campus chapter of the ACLU, which provide opportunities for networking, increased awareness of issues and policies, and fellowship throughout the academic year.
