Major Wins for Equality In Maine and Iowa

News too good to wait for my weekly update:

In a unanimous decision, Maine’s Law Court ruled that two foster children, 10-year-old “M” and her brother, six-year-old “R,” could be adopted by the lesbian couple who have raised them for the past six years. Equality Maine, in an e-mail to supporters, notes this is “the first time in Maine history that a same-sex couple can jointly adopt a child.”

They warn of a possible legislative effort to overturn the ruling, however. Gay and Lesbian Advocates and Defenders (GLAD), who fought the case on behalf of the moms, offer evidence (PDF Link) of how ridiculous this would be:

[The couple’s] petition was supported by professional organizations including the American Psychological Association, the Child Welfare League of America, and the Maine Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics.

Attorney General Steven Rowe also filed a friend of the court brief, arguing that prohibiting this adoption would be counter to the letter and purposes of Maine’s Adoption Act, which seeks to protect the best interest of each adoptive child.

According to the state, Maine currently has 2,286 children in foster care, 530 of whom have a goal of adoption.

Attorney Mary Bonauto of GLAD, one of three who represented the couple, was also the lead attorney in Massachusetts’ historic marriage equality case. Hey, isn’t there an Attorney General position open down in DC?

Halfway across the country, a District Judge in Polk County, Iowa, ruled that the state’s ban on same-sex marriage violates the Iowa Constitution, and must be rewritten in a gender-neutral manner to allow civil marriage for same-sex couples.

This is a victory for all same-sex couples and equality-minded Iowans, parents or not. I find it interesting, though, that children had a clear influence in the case. Three of the six plaintiff couples have children, and others are planning to do so, according to Lambda Legal, who filed the lawsuit on behalf of the couples. The decision stated “This court has yet to hear any convincing argument as to how excluding same-sex couples from getting married promotes responsible reproduction in general or by different-sex couples in particular. So far as this court can tell (the law) operates only to harm same-sex couples and their children.”

Opponents are also already preparing a ballot measure to bring the matter before voters. On the judicial side, the case will move forward to the Iowa Supreme Court.

A significant win today, but still a long way to go before same-sex couples can look forward to nuptials in the Tall Corn State (whose motto, I’ll note, is “Our liberties we prize and our rights we will maintain”).