U.S. v. Skrmetti: Debating Reality

Clifford Geertz once observed that law is a way of “imagining the real,” that it offers “visions of community” rather than “echoes of it.” If so, then the gender debates represent more than clashes between interest groups. At stake: what do we think is real?

This special edition presents some of the papers given at a recent colloquium on U.S. v. Skrmetti, which was decided by the Supreme Court on June 18, 2025. The case concerns a Tennessee law prohibiting the use of puberty blockers or cross-sex hormones on children. The Supreme Court's upholding of this law has profound implications.