Juxtapositions of Parenthood

Same-sex parenting stories abound this week. Here are some highlights:

• A married lesbian couple has filed a human rights complaint against the province of Nova Scotia, Canada because it does not recognize both of them as parents to their child (born after the wedding) unless the non-biological mother adopts her.
• The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) today urged the Georgia Court of Appeals to dismiss a county judge’s contempt order and jail sentence against Elizabeth Hadaway, who was denied adoption rights of a girl in her care because she (Hadaway) is a lesbian. She continued to care for the girl, Emma, after the denial, per the biological mother’s wishes. The judge then issued a contempt order, sentenced her to up to ten days in jail, and ordered Emma into foster care. The ACLU helped secure Emma’s return to Hadaway in May.
• The Maryland Court of Appeals ruled that the state’s ban on same-sex marriage did not violate the state constitution. It found the state has “an interest in promoting procreation,” “the fundamental right to marriage and its ensuing benefits are conferred on opposite-sex couples not because of a distinction between whether various opposite-sex couples actually procreate, but rather because of the possibility of procreation” and the General Assembly “has not acted wholly unreasonably in granting recognition to the only relationship capable of bearing children traditionally within the marital unit.” Yep. Opposite-sex couples who might procreate are worthy of more rights than same-sex couples who actually have children. Terrance at Republic of T, whose new daughter was born a mere week ago, makes the excellent point “Compared to the time and effort required to raise a child to a happy, healthy, productive adulthood, reproduction is the relatively easy part.”
• An Australian lesbian mom is fighting her child’s known donor, who is trying to have his partner declared a second father. The man says he wants the child to have two moms and two dads. (Warning: Link is to News Corp-owned site; language like “homosexual lover” in use.)
• A lesbian couple in Australia is suing their obstetrician after he implanted two embryos during an in vitro fertilization (IVF) procedure, instead of one, as requested, causing the couple to have twins. The mainstream media is mostly treating this as a case of bungled IVF (as the doctor admits), rather than a “lesbian” matter per se—the error could have as easily happened to an opposite-sex couple. One article does note that different jurisdictions in Australia have different rules for whether fertile lesbian couples can have access to IVF, but also notes that sexuality is irrelevant in this case. One conservative Christian site (which I won’t dignify with a link; search Google News for “lesbian twins” and you’ll find it) uses the case as an example of why same-sex couples should be denied fertility treatment. Whether this is a frivolous lawsuit, a shameful act by a couple who should be grateful for healthy children, or justified by the admitted medical error is a matter for debate. What it isn’t is an example of all same-sex parents, good or bad.

(Thanks to PageOneQ for several of the above links.)