The Legalities of Womanhood
Mentor: Nomi Morris
My project takes a journalistic approach that examines the way that women navigate the legal system as individuals. Gender is the lens through which I will chronicle the effect of identity on legal proceedings, specifically as it pertains to motherhood and family law, to bring to light the varying experiences of women under the law, disparities in experiences stemming from gender. Through interviews of those who have experienced the system firsthand, legal professionals, and those affected by the way the legal system interacts with women, alongside research and data on the topic, I will examine biases and the relationship between gender, motherhood, and the law. The project will culminate in an article that brings forth discussions of how gender affects treatment by legal entities, what obstacles women and mothers face, and how self-perception and performance of gender inform outlook and outcome in the courtroom.
Read Sierra’s feature “Women Under the Law“
