(Originally published in my Mombian newspaper column.)
I love the start of fall. It’s still warm, but without the oppressive edge of summer heat. The nights are cool, and the air brings with it the smell of leaves about to change. It’s my favorite time of year for bike riding, when I can pedal past the first hints of yellow and orange in the foliage and feel the change of season in my bones. We’re at a season change in LGBTQ equality, too, I thought to myself on a recent ride.
Marriage equality is won, but we must now ensure our marriage rights are not curtailed through so-called “Religious Freedom Restoration Acts” in several states, which would give people the right to discriminate based on “sincerely held religious beliefs”—potentially impacting not only civil marriage licenses, but also adoption and foster care services, among other things. As we resist these bills, we must also work for the expansion of nondiscrimination laws, particularly in employment, housing, and public accommodation.
Another seasonal task will be to clarify and expand parentage laws that apply to the way we form our families, such as those related to surrogacy and de facto parentage (when a person assumes the role of a parent and holds the child out as their own). While parental rights and the need for children to have family stability have been closely linked with marriage equality, as was evident in just about every federal marriage ruling, marriage equality alone will not ensure every child is protected by legal ties to any and all parents.
This is evident in the recent case of a former couple in Maryland who planned a child together. The child was born in Washington, D.C., just a month after the city began allowing same-sex couples to marry. The new moms didn’t marry for five months. They separated a year later and then divorced, and an appeals court in Maryland (where they live now) has upheld a lower court ruling saying that the nonbiological mother has no parental standing to seek visitation. A child born during a marriage is presumed to be the child of both parents, but that didn’t apply here, said the court, because the child was conceived and born prior to the marriage.
This new season, too, brings with it a fresh breeze of awareness about transgender equality, as transgender advocates continue their work for nondiscrimination statutes, fair medical coverage, recognition of trans identities, and more. Back in 2014, Actor Laverne Cox graced the cover of TIME magazine with the headline “The Transgender Tipping Point.” Perhaps it was—but I think things will tip further now that less of the LGBTQ community’s energy will be focused on marriage.
A new season in our modern age also brings new media. I hope it continues the trend of a steady increase in LGBTQ representation across the spectrum. More and more shows feature LGBTQ characters, with an increasing range of racial diversity as well, according to GLAAD’s 2015 Network Responsibility Index. Children’s shows, especially for younger children, still lag that trend, however. On the day Sesame Street features a clearly LGBTQ character, then I’ll know we’ve really made progress.
At the same time, a small but growing number of LGBTQ-inclusive children’s books are depicting a greater variety of family structures, gender identities, and racial diversity. Equally important, more books that are not “about” LGBTQ families—including some best-selling mainstream series—have started showing gay characters. Rick Riordan’s wildly popular Percy Jackson series features a character, Nico di Angelo, who in The House of Hades
Even more unexpected, however, is representation in Dan Pilkey’s popular elementary-grade series Captain Underpants, which is usually filled with the kind of sophomoric humor that makes my eyes roll. In his latest book, Captain Underpants and the Sensational Saga of Sir Stinks-A-Lot, Pilkey offers readers a glimpse of his two main characters in the future, writing, “Old George, his wife and their kids, Meena and Nik, sat on the couch, while Old Harold, his husband, and their twins, Owen and Kei, plopped down on the giant beanbag chair.” It’s not the set up for a joke—it’s just a reasonable future for the characters. The most significant aspect of both Riordan and Pilkey’s scenarios, I believe, is that they don’t assume gay and straight are two separate worlds, but rather harmonious parts of the same.
A change of seasons indeed, I think to myself as I ride. On the final stretch back to my house, I do what I have loved doing since I was a kid: jam the bike into high gear and fly down a hill, seeing how far up the next hill the momentum will carry me. Inevitably, I have to pedal again, but I know I’ll always make it to the top. LGBTQ advocates are carrying a lot of momentum from the marriage win. We’ll have to pedal again, to be sure, but the top of the hill is in sight. It’s a beautiful season for a ride.
