Free Essays on Gay Adoption

â€Å"When a gay couple sought to adopt a boy- who had leukemia, had been neglected by his biological parents, had lived in five foster homes, and whose adoption was favored by his legal representative- the judge deemed it ‘not in the interest of a seven-year-old male child to be placed for adoption into the home of a pair of adult male homosexual lovers.’†(Utne 58) Three years of searching for a qualified heterosexual couple failed. This and many other similar cases have denied children a family by ignoring many qualified homosexuals. With this being an age when people are supposedly more open-minded, why is it that gays are treated this way just because of their sexual orientation? Many Americans are still uncomfortable with the idea of gay parents. The traditional family has always included a mother and a father. However, today more and more families are being headed by gay parents. Some have children from previous marriages. Many must use artificial inseminati on or surrogate mothers because it is extremely difficult for gays to adopt children. Although it seems to contradict society’s view of the traditional family, homosexuals should be allowed to adopt because they deserve equal rights, and sexual orientation is not a reasonable determining factor in the qualifications of a parent. Also, allowing them to adopt can actually help society. â€Å"Surveys suggest that a large majority of the American public generally favor anti-discrimination laws.†(Harris 2) Why then, according to a Newsweek survey, do only 36% of those surveyed think gay couples should have the right to adopt? Samuel Chavers, assistant general counsel for Children and Families, says â€Å"adoption is not a right; it’s a privilege.† If this is true, there is still not a rational basis for denying homosexuals the â€Å"privilege† to adopt. It is clearly an anti-gay bias. Although only two states specifically ban adoption by gays, most stat es discourage it. Just as ... Free Essays on Gay Adoption Free Essays on Gay Adoption The conception that lesbians and gay men may be parents is frequently perceived in today’s society as impossible or immoral. Gay men and lesbians are often viewed as excluded from having children because sexual reproduction is related to men and women only. My approach to this uniquely controversial topic of gay parenting will be that of attempting to analyze the Pro side first. Gays and lesbians are human too and who is to say that they don’t deserve equal rights in society. Society has to realize that the modern family has developed into many different forms in recent years in that the "nuclear family" is not necessarily the most common form anymore. Then I will attempt to analyze the Con side which expresses the fact that two people of the same sex should not be raising and rearing children together. Many believe that if the couple is unable to produce children together, then they shouldn’t be raising them as parents. Children need a balance in their lives and different sexed parents can provide that balance efficiently. Each parent (mom or dad) socializes the child differently and the child needs to be introduced to both worlds. I will then proceed to critique both sides on strengths and weaknesses, based on facts, studies, and my own opinion, and then draw some of my own conclusions on this controversial topic of Gay Parenting. Pro Position There is no valid reason for refusing to call lesbian and gay headed household families. They fall under every conceivable criterion for identifying families and the concept of a Family. "They are groups of coresident kin providing jointly through income-pooling for eachothers need of food and shelter. They socialize children, engage in emotional and physical support, and make up part of a larger kin network". (O’ Brien and Weir, 128). There are also many homophobic ( the irrational fear or hatred of homosexuality or gay people, Biery 88) individuals in today’s societ... Free Essays on Gay Adoption The conception that lesbians and gay men may be parents is frequently perceived in today’s society as impossible or immoral. Gay men and lesbians are often viewed as excluded from having children because sexual reproduction is related to men and women only. My approach to this uniquely controversial topic of gay parenting will be that of attempting to analyze the Pro side first. Gays and lesbians are human too and who is to say that they don’t deserve equal rights in society. Society has to realize that the modern family has developed into many different forms in recent years in that the "nuclear family" is not necessarily the most common form anymore. Then I will attempt to analyze the Con side which expresses the fact that two people of the same sex should not be raising and rearing children together. Many believe that if the couple is unable to produce children together, then they shouldn’t be raising them as parents. Children need a balance in their lives and different sexed parents can provide that balance efficiently. Each parent (mom or dad) socializes the child differently and the child needs to be introduced to both worlds. I will then proceed to critique both sides on strengths and weaknesses, based on facts, studies, and my own opinion, and then draw some of my own conclusions on this controversial topic of Gay Parenting. Pro Position There is no valid reason for refusing to call lesbian and gay headed household families. They fall under every conceivable criterion for identifying families and the concept of a Family. "They are groups of coresident kin providing jointly through income-pooling for eachothers need of food and shelter. They socialize children, engage in emotional and physical support, and make up part of a larger kin network". (O’ Brien and Weir, 128). There are also many homophobic ( the irrational fear or hatred of homosexuality or gay people, Biery 88) individuals in today’s societ... Free Essays on Gay Adoption The conception that lesbians and gay men may be parents is frequently perceived in today’s society as impossible or immoral. Gay men and lesbians are often viewed as excluded from having children because sexual reproduction is related to men and women only. My approach to this uniquely controversial topic of gay parenting will be that of attempting to analyze the Pro side first. Gays and lesbians are human too and who is to say that they don’t deserve equal rights in society. Society has to realize that the modern family has developed into many different forms in recent years in that the "nuclear family" is not necessarily the most common form anymore. Then I will attempt to analyze the Con side which expresses the fact that two people of the same sex should not be raising and rearing children together. Many believe that if the couple is unable to produce children together, then they shouldn’t be raising them as parents. Children need a balance in their lives and different sexed parents can provide that balance efficiently. Each parent (mom or dad) socializes the child differently and the child needs to be introduced to both worlds. I will then proceed to critique both sides on strengths and weaknesses, based on facts, studies, and my own opinion, and then draw some of my own conclusions on this controversial topic of Gay Parenting. Pro Position There is no valid reason for refusing to call lesbian and gay headed household families. They fall under every conceivable criterion for identifying families and the concept of a Family. "They are groups of coresident kin providing jointly through income-pooling for eachothers need of food and shelter. They socialize children, engage in emotional and physical support, and make up part of a larger kin network". (O’ Brien and Weir, 128). There are also many homophobic ( the irrational fear or hatred of homosexuality or gay people, Biery 88) individuals in today’s societ... Free Essays on Gay Adoption The conception that lesbians and gay men may be parents is frequently perceived in today’s society as impossible or immoral. Gay men and lesbians are often viewed as excluded from having children because sexual reproduction is related to men and women only. My approach to this uniquely controversial topic of gay parenting will be that of attempting to analyze the Pro side first. Gays and lesbians are human too and who is to say that they don’t deserve equal rights in society. Society has to realize that the modern family has developed into many different forms in recent years in that the "nuclear family" is not necessarily the most common form anymore. Then I will attempt to analyze the Con side which expresses the fact that two people of the same sex should not be raising and rearing children together. Many believe that if the couple is unable to produce children together, then they shouldn’t be raising them as parents. Children need a balance in their lives and different sexed parents can provide that balance efficiently. Each parent (mom or dad) socializes the child differently and the child needs to be introduced to both worlds. I will then proceed to critique both sides on strengths and weaknesses, based on facts, studies, and my own opinion, and then draw some of my own conclusions on this controversial topic of Gay Parenting. Pro Position There is no valid reason for refusing to call lesbian and gay headed household families. They fall under every conceivable criterion for identifying families and the concept of a Family. "They are groups of coresident kin providing jointly through income-pooling for eachothers need of food and shelter. They socialize children, engage in emotional and physical support, and make up part of a larger kin network". (O’ Brien and Weir, 128). There are also many homophobic ( the irrational fear or hatred of homosexuality or gay people, Biery 88) individuals in today’s societ... Free Essays on Gay Adoption â€Å"When a gay couple sought to adopt a boy- who had leukemia, had been neglected by his biological parents, had lived in five foster homes, and whose adoption was favored by his legal representative- the judge deemed it ‘not in the interest of a seven-year-old male child to be placed for adoption into the home of a pair of adult male homosexual lovers.’†(Utne 58) Three years of searching for a qualified heterosexual couple failed. This and many other similar cases have denied children a family by ignoring many qualified homosexuals. With this being an age when people are supposedly more open-minded, why is it that gays are treated this way just because of their sexual orientation? Many Americans are still uncomfortable with the idea of gay parents. The traditional family has always included a mother and a father. However, today more and more families are being headed by gay parents. Some have children from previous marriages. Many must use artificial inseminati on or surrogate mothers because it is extremely difficult for gays to adopt children. Although it seems to contradict society’s view of the traditional family, homosexuals should be allowed to adopt because they deserve equal rights, and sexual orientation is not a reasonable determining factor in the qualifications of a parent. Also, allowing them to adopt can actually help society. â€Å"Surveys suggest that a large majority of the American public generally favor anti-discrimination laws.†(Harris 2) Why then, according to a Newsweek survey, do only 36% of those surveyed think gay couples should have the right to adopt? Samuel Chavers, assistant general counsel for Children and Families, says â€Å"adoption is not a right; it’s a privilege.† If this is true, there is still not a rational basis for denying homosexuals the â€Å"privilege† to adopt. It is clearly an anti-gay bias. Although only two states specifically ban adoption by gays, most stat es discourage it. Just as ... Free Essays on Gay Adoption Gay Adoption Today people seem open about homosexuality, there is nothing to hide anymore it seems. I think this is not true when you look at the statistics of a gay / lesbian and their life styles it is embarrassing almost. I would definitely not want to be known as homosexual. People say that homosexuality is natural and it’s just the other side of heterosexual. If this is true why is the homosexual life style so unhealthy? But if they want to be homosexual that’s up to them but when people start to talk about letting a homosexual adopt a child, which seems absurd. With all the facts and information we have today and some of the population thinks its ok to have a homosexual adopt a child. Children that live with homosexual parent or parents are four times as likely to end up being gay. It is also a known fact that homosexuals are 16 times more likely to molest a child. Lastly stability is the key to raising an emotionally and mentally healthy child. Homosexual partners simp ly cannot provide the stability that married heterosexual couples can give. Children need a role model, both male and female. Every child has the right to both a father and a mother. In a study shown in January 1996 issue of Developmental Psychology, London researchers Susan Golombok and Fiona Tasker found that children who have been raised by homosexual parents were 4 times more likely to identify as homosexual or get involved in homosexual behavior than children raised in heterosexual households (Bagby 1). As resulted in their studies, Golombok and Tasker realize that â€Å"by creating a climate of acceptance or rejection of homosexuality within the family, parents may have some impact on their children’s sexual experimentation as heterosexual, lesbian or gay.† Homosexual adoption is just a way to gain the benefits and rights of a homosexual marriage. (Huggins 2) Its like unmarried heterosexuals shouldn’t be able to adopt because th...