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 Says Such Adoptions are in the Best Interests of the Children HRC Applauds Academy Basing Position on Scientific Studies |
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Compiled by GayToday Human Rights Campaign Washington, D.C.-The American Academy of Pediatrics has issued a policy statement supporting legal and legislative efforts to provide second-parent or co-parent adoptions to same-sex couples. The academy is basing its position on a review of scientific literature, which led it to conclude that such adoptions are in the best interests of children. The Human Rights Campaign was quick to issue a statement: "We applaud the American Association of Pediatrics for strongly supporting second-parent adoptions by gay couples because they are indeed in the best interests of children," said HRC Executive Director Elizabeth Birch. "We urge judges, legislators and policy makers to act on the wise recommendations of this distinguished organization." The policy statement is published in the February 2002 issue of Pediatrics, a peer-reviewed academic journal. It urges AAP members: "Support the right of every child and family to the financial, psychological and legal security that results from having legally recognized parents who are committed to each other and the welfare of their children." The statement is accompanied by a technical report that provides details from the best available scientific studies of children who grow up with gay or lesbian parents. "The children of many same-sex couples live in great risk because some courts and state governments have prevented both parents from having a legal relationship to their own sons and daughters," said Lisa Bennett, who runs HRC FamilyNet, the family project of the Human Rights Campaign Foundation. "Children in many of these families can be denied insurance coverage or medical care in an emergency. If the non-adoptive parent dies before such children turn 18, they can be removed from the only home they know. We hope this policy statement leads to greater protection for these vulnerable children and families." Only six states and the District of Columbia have made second-parent adoption available statewide, either by statute or state appellate court ruling, according to research conducted by HRC FamilyNet. The six are Connecticut, Illinois, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York and Vermont. In addition, California's recently passed domestic partnership law allows for stepparent adoption, meaning gay men and lesbians in that state are eligible to adopt their partners' biological children if they wish. Judges in 20 other states have awarded second-parent adoptions at the trial court level, meaning judges have granted them in selected counties but there is no guarantee judges in other counties would do the same. On January 29, the California Supreme Court agreed to review a lower court's ruling that said that second-parent adoptions are not valid under California law, despite the fact that there already have been thousands of such adoptions in that state. Until recently, Pennsylvania had granted second-parent adoptions in 14 of 67 counties but in November 2000, the state Superior Court ruled they were no longer available to same-sex parents. (See attached chapter from draft of HRC FamilyNet's upcoming report, "The State of the Family: Laws and Legislation Affecting Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender Families in 2001.") The American Pediatric Academy policy statement recommends that pediatricians become familiar with gay and lesbian parents and their children, and that they advocate for initiatives that enable second-parent and coparent adoptions by same-sex couples. "The American Pediatric Academy joins a growing body of child welfare organizations, including the Child Welfare League of America and the North American Council on Adoptable Children, that have issued policy statements asserting that a parent's sexual orientation is irrelevant to his or her ability to raise a child," Bennett said. "In addition, leading psychological organizations, such as the American Psychological Association, have declared that sexual orientation is not a determinant of good parenting." Second-parent or co-parent adoption is critical to children because it provides these protections:
"It is time for states and the federal government to re-examine family policy to make sure all children are protected," Bennett said. "Children of same-sex couples deserve the same stability and security that are routinely available to all other children." |
