States of Passion

Yvonne Zylan, Associate Professor of Sociology, earned a B.A. in East Asian Studies from Yale University, a Ph.D. in sociology from New York University and a juris doctor from the University of San Diego School of Law. She has published articles in the Michigan Journal of Gender & Law, the Michigan Journal of Law Reform, Gender & Society, Social Forces, the American Journal of Sociology, American Sociological Review, and Signs: Journal of Women in Culture and Society. Prof. Zylan's areas of scholarship include law and society, sexuality, social theory, political sociology, and the state and social policy. Her current work is centrally concerned with feminist theory and praxis, and addresses the social construction of sex, gender, and the body in and through legal discourse. Prior to joining the Hamilton faculty, Prof. Zylan practiced law for three years in the litigation department at Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP and she remains a member of the bar in good standing in the State of California and in the federal courts of the 9th District. In 2005, she appeared before the Bankruptcy Appellate Panel of the 9th Circuit challenging state and federal bankruptcy law as applied to same-sex couples.