The debate over gay marriage has been in the headlines for nearly the past year, but the topic of gay parents has faded into the background. A new Tufts-New England Medical Center Professor of Pediatrics study shows that children raised by homosexual parents have no differences from those raised in "traditional" families. Using over 25 years' worth of data, this study could draw attention to the issue of gay adoption.
Before gay marriage became a voting question, homosexual adoption laws were controversial. They vary from state to state, but homosexual partners are largely able to adopt children or give birth via donors. Florida banned adoption by gay couples in 1977; Mississippi passed similar legislation in 2000. Laws elsewhere remain hazy, though. Some states allow any unmarried person to adopt, and a second person can subsequently apply to be a co-guardian. Usually, legal precedents in local courts decide if gay couples can adopt more than legislation permits.
Some states that are tolerant of adoption by gay couples, such as Oregon, Ohio and Georgia, also passed anti-gay marriage laws in the Nov. 2 elections. It appears that these policies are in direct contradiction of each other, but apparently lawmakers have overlooked it. It remains to be seen if the opposition against gay marriage will spill over and ban gay adoption around the country, too.
Hopefully, this will not happen. Much of the opposition to giving homosexuals the right to marry and adopt stems from the fear of those who are different from what they consider "normal." But, as the study shows, having two parents of the same sex is not detrimental to the development of children. Those who view homosexuality as inherently immoral are not interested in these arguments, however. Their mind is already made up.
What is likely more important to a child's development is having a supportive, loving family at home. Families with parents, siblings and grandparents in one house are readily accepted, as are those with single parents and families with step-parents and step-siblings. These differ from the "norm" of a nuclear family but have still raised children to the same success. If these families are accepted, those headed by homosexual parents should be also.
Instead of criticizing the organization of a family, focus should be placed on individual cases. It would be madness to suggest that a child is better off in an abusive home with heterosexual parents, rather than of a loving situation with lesbian parents. Homosexual parents should be treated like any other parent and held to the same high standards needed to adopt a child. This is the only fair option to ensure that a child is placed in the best home possible.
The study, however, is not perfect. It focused on lesbian couples, and the subject pools were small and incomprehensive. Ideally, a more studies will be done soon that will give more complete picture of families led by homosexual partners. The family structure has long been changing in the United States, but so long as children can be raised in loving, responsible households, our future is secure.<$>
