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Elizabeth Rojo

McKeritch

English 1010-32

November 4, 2016

LGBT Adoption

In the modern world today same-sex adoption has been considered a potential adoptive

parents. In the last decade, an estimate of six to fourteen million children would either have a gay

or lesbian parent, and between eight to ten million children will be raised in a gay or lesbian

household. Recent data from U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Adoption and

Foster Care Analysis Reporting System (AFCARS) an estimate of 500,000 children in foster care

nationally an average of 100,000 in need to be adopted (ACLU). Approximately 3.8% of the U.S

population identifies as gay, lesbian, bisexual, or transgendered, in 2015 (Gallup poll). In 2016,

all 50 states legalized same-sex adoption. Despite Mississippi lone holdout a federal judge struck

down the law as unconstitutional; the Supreme Court decided to legalize same-sex marriage

nationwide. Although the gains in equality in the adoption system, some states still hold

restrictions on fostering children.

Types of Adoption

As LGBT adoption is on the rise, many individuals might not be unaware of the options

that are available. In many states LGBT couples need to have the same adoption qualifications as

heterosexual couples. Adoption can be a complicated process for anyone regardless of their

sexual orientation. The best place to start is to familiarize oneself with the requirements,

procedures, and paperwork that will be part of the journey. LGBT individuals must also begin by
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deciding which of the four types of LGBT adoption that best fits their needs, either single,

second or step-parent adoption, and also joint adoption.

Single parent adoption, (non-coupled) is when individuals want to adopt a child would

when they are single. A single parent adoption usually a single lesbian woman or gay man which

have decided that they would like to adopt a child. However, it is the least common among the

LGBT community. Second parent adoption,(co-parent) is a legal procedure which allow a

same-sex parent, whether they have legally recognized their relationships to other parent, to

adopt their spouse's biological or adoptive child. That gives legal rights to their partner through a

formal adoption (NCLR) to be the legal parent. Stepparent adoption, is similar to second parent

adoption, except same-sex couple must be married. Which is needed to qualify for this adoption

type. After getting married the original legal parent gives full legal rights to their spouse through

formal adoption. Both biological parents must give consent or agree to a stepparent adoption.

Joint adoption, allows same-sex couples equal participation in the adoption of a child. Spouses

share equal legal rights, however some states require the couple to be married for this process.

Sometimes this can be an obstacle, but now that same-sex couples are eligible for marriage

nationwide, it is no longer a concern.

All adoption types lead to a road that allows the LGBT community to adopt a child and

the joy of adding to one’s family. It is in the best interest to consider which fit the needs of the

people of the soon to be parents, it’s essential to remain well informed of the law that might

discriminate against certain adoption types in specific states. (LifeLong Adoption).

Issues and Concern

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It is critical to address a few issues and concerns, unique to LGBT adoptive parents is

that the social workers have to examine their own personal biases to have an informed decision

upon same-sex adoptive families; so the kids receive support that they need and thrive for. Some

issues brought up concerns are how a child will be molested by an homosexual parent? Or, will

children of same-sex parents be teased or harassed?

Although the answer to these questions are obvious some people still believe that when a

person identifies themselves as LGBTQ they are sexual predators. There’s no legitimate

scientific research connecting between homosexuality and pedophilia. Sexual orientation is

defined as a person attracted to another individual. Pedophilia is defined as an adult sexually

attracted to an adolescent. A relevant finding that cases involving molestation of a boy by a man

is 74% more likely if the man were or has been in a heterosexual relationship with the boy's

mother or another female relative. A conclusion was found that “a child’s risk of being molested

by the child’s own relative’s heterosexual partner is highly likely 100 more times greater than by

someone who might be identified as being homosexual.” (Findlaw).

Children of LGBT parents are vulnerable to teasing and harassment, as they approach

adolescence when any signs of difference is grounded for exclusion. In general, LGBT parents

are aware of the difficulties that a child may face. Many have dealt with prejudice all their lives,

most see it as an opportunity for discussion that will help their children grow as a person. In

some custody cases, courts have considered the fact that a child might be a victim of bullying as

contrary to the best interest of the child. Argues the stigma attached to having a LGBT parent

will damage a child’s self-esteem. Research has found that children of homosexual parents do
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report experiencing teasing because of parents, their self-esteem level are no lower than those of

children of heterosexual parents. (Findlaw)

Life After Adoption

All families at some time or another will have the discussion on sexuality. For

homosexual families this could be a very sensitive subject, however a healthy family regardless

of sexual orientation share the same values; love, respect, commitment, and understanding. It is

important when talking with children to stress what these values mean to the family, and it is

important to recognize that there are many different cultures, communities, and families around

the world. A support organization suggest, that parents should discuss sexuality with their

children (Family Pride Coalition). Some things they recommend:

● Be honest about your own identity and comfort level.

● If you are uncomfortable, let the child know this is hard to talk about, but it is
important for families to talk about difficult things.
● Listen closely to child, and when possible let the child take the lead. Let them ask
questions. Take cues about their level of understanding from the questions they
ask and interact at that level.
● Be clear about one’s feelings connected to sexuality, coming out, privacy, and
family values.
● Consider the child's age and how much information they need.

Once an adoption is complete the business of family life begins. Like any other adoptive

parents homosexual parents are finding ways to incorporate their children into their lives and

help one another make a smooth transition. There are numerous support groups to help meet

these needs. A group is part of a larger support network (PFP) serves more than 250 lesbian and

gay men families in Delaware Valley. It is giving members a chance to socialize through the

group’s advocacy and educational projects that are encouraging parents to work with teachers on

adoption, race, and alternative family issues that affect their children. Homosexual parents that
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have older children have formed their own network, with children of lesbian and gay families

everywhere (Colage). Virtual support networks or support groups are important for any family;

adoptive, biological, one with heterosexual parents or homoseuxal parents.

Although the process of adoption takes several steps the reason on why people decided to

adoption because they want to have a child. If homosexual want to adopt it is the same as any

other type of adoption. The word adoption means the act of taking something on as your own or

also referred to the legal process of becoming a non-biological parent. This paper is just another

paper that is just trying to inform those who do not know what type of adoption a homosexual

person can do, or it is for anyone who just wants more information about the LGBT community

and their rules on adoption.

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WorkCite

"Impact of Adoption on Birth Parents." ​PsycEXTRA Dataset​ (2015): n.

pag.​Http://www.nclrights.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/2PA_state_list.pdf.​ Nclrights, 2015. Web.

7 Nov. 2016. (NCLR)

User, Super. "Hoping." ​LGBT Adoption​. N.p., n.d. Web. 07 Nov. 2016. (LifeLong Adoption)

Reuters, Thomson. "Same Sex Adoption - FindLaw." ​Findlaw​. Marketing Services for Lawyers, 9

Jan. 1996. Web. 07 Nov. 2016. (Findlaw)

"Philadelphia Family Pride." ​Philadelphia Family Pride​. Annual Silent Auction, 2008. Web. 07 Nov.

2016. (PFP)

Schwandt, Wayne. "COLAGE: People with a Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, or Queer Parent

-." ​COLAGE People with a Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender or Queer Parent​. Volunteer-run

National Office, 1 Jan. 1999. Web. 07 Nov. 2016. (Colage)