Max D. Movsovitz papers
Overview
Topeka resident Max D. Movsovitz was cited on April 28, 1995 for sexual solicitation in Topeka's Gage Park. He was fined and ordered to stay out of the Park for two years. Movsovitz fought the charges, claiming that the Topeka ordinance was unconstitutional. Movsovitz lost his case but took it to the Court of Appeals and finally to the Supreme Court of Kansas where he ultimately lost. This collection of his papers reflects these activities and includes legal briefs and documents, legal correspondence, personal correspondence regarding the case, and newspaper and magazine articles.
Dates
- Creation: 1980 - 2000
Creator
- Movsovitz, Max D. (Person)
Conditions Governing Access
No access restrictions.
Conditions Governing Use
Spencer Library staff may determine use restrictions dependent on the physical condition of manuscript materials.
Biography of Max D. Movsovitz
Max D. Movsovitz is a Phi Beta Kappa graduate of Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia. Movsovitz moved to Topeka in 1992 where he lived and worked as an artist.
Movsovitz was a resident of the city of Topeka, Kansas when he was arrested for sexual solicitation on April 28, 1995. He was fined and ordered to stay out of Gage Park for two years. As a gay man, Movsovitz believed the Topeka ordinance on sodomy to be unconstitutional as it applied only to homosexuals and not to heterosexuals. He fought the charges and lost, but took the case first to the Kansas Court of Appeals and finally to the Supreme Court of Kansas where he ultimately lost.
Extent
2.5 Linear Feet (5 boxes + 1 oversize box, 1 DVD)
Language of Materials
English
Scope and Contents
The Max D. Movsovitz papers date from 1980 to 2000. Legal documents are the largest portion of this collection at 1.5 linear feet (3 boxes). They reflect Movsovitz's initial case in municipal court, his appeal to the Kansas Court of Appeals, and finally to the Supreme Court of Kansas.
Newspaper and magazine articles are also a significant portion of the collection at .5 linear feet (1 box, 1 oversize box at RH MS Q290). There is also a DVD of a panel discussion at Washburn University about Kansas sodomy law, in which Movsovitz participated.
Mosvovitz also collected community responses to the legal case, including those of Pastor Fred Phelps and the Westboro Baptist Church in Topeka, Kansas.
Physical Location
RH MS 1140
Physical Location
RH MS Q290
Physical Location
KC AV 107
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Gift, Max D. Movsovitz, 2008.
Subject
- Ambrosio, John (Person)
- Phelps, Fred W., Sr. (Fred Waldron), 1929-2014 (Person)
- Smith, Charlene (Charlene L.) (Person)
- American Civil Liberties Union (Organization)
- National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (Organization)
- Title
- Guide to the Max D. Movsovitz Collection
- Subtitle
- Max D. Movsovitz papers
- Author
- Finding aid prepared by skt, 2008. Finding aid encoded by skt, 2008. Finding aid revised by cl, 2010; mwh, 2021.
- Date
- 2008
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description
- Finding aid written in English.
- Finding aid permalink
- http://hdl.handle.net/10407/6313993212
- Preferred citation
-
Max D. Movsovitz papers, Kansas Collection, RH MS 1140, Kenneth Spencer Research Library, University of Kansas
Repository Details
Part of the University of Kansas. Kenneth Spencer Research Library Repository