Tuesday, October 12, 2010

High Economic & Social Costs of Gay Adoption Bans

Love it when adoption issues go main-stream -- here the Center for American Progress addresses State antigay adoption policies:
A Florida appeals court unanimously decided last month that a state ban on adoption by gay men and lesbians was unconstitutional (Florida Governor Charlie Crist also said that the state will stop enforcing the law). This is a reminder that the struggle for LGBT equality extends far beyond the headline issues of repealing “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” passing the Employment Nondiscrimination Act, and achieving marriage rights for gay couples.

The victory in Florida is a huge win for advocates of children’s rights and well-being as well as those working for LGBT equality. But several states still unfairly target gay men and lesbians who want to adopt or foster children.

These policies should be overturned. They do nothing to serve our nation’s foster children and have high economic costs. What’s more, evidence shows that gay men and lesbians make just as good parents as their heterosexual counterparts, and the public increasingly supports gay adoption rights.
FYI, the Florida Department of Children & Families (who lost in the Florida appeals court) announced today that it will not appeal the court decision.  That means that the intermediate appellate court's decision will stand, and Florida's ban on gay adoption is invalidated. 
 
But that doesn't answer the question in other states.  The court decision in Florida was based on Florida's own state constitution, not on the Federal Constitution.

2 comments:

The Declassified Adoptee said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Sandy said...

I wonder what they think of closed records for adoptees based on their slogan "Progressive Ideas for a Strong, Just, and Free Ameria".