Here’s the latest roundup of some things happening in the world of LGBTQ parenting that I haven’t covered elsewhere! There’s a Disney first; views of LGBTQ parental rights in Japan, Peru, and Bulgaria; a trans dad speaking out; assisted reproduction in a fast-food restaurant bathroom; and more.
Family Profiles
- Dad and trans man Kayden Coleman spoke with TODAY about fatherhood and “what people get wrong” about him. (H/t Translash Media.)
- Joy Wright, a lesbian mom, writes at HuffPo about her path to parenthood, first trying when single via assisted insemination (in a Burger King bathroom), and ultimately with a partner, via adoption.
- Two dads in Texas share their family creation story with ABC affiliate WFAA.
- Diver and Olympian Tom Daley spoke with the Advocate about fatherhood, coming out, and more.
Politics and Law
- Family Equality CEO Stacey Stevenson was on The Sunday Show with Jonathan Capehart to talk about the impact of conservative legislation on LGBTQ families. (Segment starts at the 35 minute mark.)
- DW.com reports on the difficulties same-sex couples in Japan face in fostering and adopting children.
- “Peruvian children of same-sex couples face barriers,” reports La Prensa Latina.
- A baby born in Spain to a two-mom couple with Bulgarian and U.K. citizenship had been stateless and unable to leave Spain since her birth in 2019—but has finally received Bulgarian citizenship. The child have been denied Spanish citizenship since neither parent is Spanish; denied U.K. citizenship because the U.K.-citizen mother was a citizen by descent, but was not born in the U.K.; and denied Bulgarian citizenship because of homophobia, as I wrote last year. Bulgaria had said that in order to receive a Bulgarian passport or identity card, she would need a Bulgarian birth certificate—but Bulgarian birth certificates do not recognize marriages of same-sex couples and only include biological parents. The Bulgarian court consulted the Court of Justice of the European Union, which said last year that the child must be issued an identity card or a passport. The Bulgarian court has now finally issued its ruling to issue her a birth certificate with both moms’ names on it and to grant her Bulgarian citizenship, reports Euractiv.
Media and Entertainment
- Calvin, by JR and Vanessa Ford and illustrated by Kayla Harren (Bookshop, Amazon; G.P. Putnam’s Sons), a joyous book about a Black, trans boy, won the Lambda Literary Award in the LGBTQ Children’s/Middle Grade category. The Heartbreak Bakery, by A. R. Capetta (Candlewick;Â Bookshop;Â Amazon), about an agender teen baker and a batch of magical brownies, won in the LGBTQ Young Adult Category. Here’s my interview with Vanessa Ford from last year.
- Characters Luz and Amity of Disney’s The Owl House finally shared a kiss, a first for main characters in a Disney show. Heather Hogan at Autostraddle has more on the show and its bisexual creator, Dana Terrace.
- Luke Evans and Billy Porter will portray husbands in the upcoming feature film Our Son, about divorcing spouses going through a custody fight over their 8-year-old son, reports Variety.
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