Raising

Of Ducks and Penguins

My son is starting preschool this week. I view this time of year as do many LGBT parents, with a sense of wonder that my child has reached his current age, panic that we won’t find new sneakers in his size before the first day, and fear of all that could harm him physically or […]

Yet More Toy Recalls

This is getting ridiculous: More toy recalls from Mattel, including various Barbie accessories (though not the dolls themselves), Fisher Price Geo Trax Locomotive Toys, and Fisher Price Bongo Band Toys. Moms Rising has a petition you can sign urging Congress and the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) to institute measures for better testing of children’s

Open Thread on the First Day of School

For those with kids (or selves) heading back to school this week: How was the first day? My son’s first day of preschool was uneventful, although it was a special day of only an hour and I was able to stay with him. He was also somewhat used to it because he did two weeks

Gaydar, Body Movement, and Hate Crimes

Body motion and type can indicate one’s sexual orientation to the casual observer, concludes a new study in the September issue of the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, “Swagger, sway, and sexuality: Judging sexual orientation from body motion and morphology.” The researchers found “the gay subjects tended to have more gender-incongruent body types .

Back-to-School Music Ideas from Erin Lee and Marci

I interviewed children’s musicians Erin Lee and Marci after meeting them on the R Family cruise in July, and posted about their inclusive approach to children’s music as well as their escapades with an illegal Elmo. They’ve kindly agreed to do a regular guest post with thematic recommendations for kid-friendly music, as well as ways

Horn Book Magazine on Books and Gender

The September/October issue of Horn Book Magazine, one of the leading journals on children’s and young adult literature, is all about books and gender. You can revisit the lesbian classic Annie on My Mind, learn how author Brian Selznick answered the question “Are you part man and part woman?,” discover “Gender Alchemy: The Transformative Power

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

Parents Appealing Decision that Schools Can Teach About Same-Sex Families

Two sets of parents in Lexington, Massachusetts are appealing a U.S. District Court dismissal of their claim that the local public school district violated their constitutional rights by teaching their children about families headed by same-sex parents. The District Court judge had said (PDF link): Public schools are entitled to teach anything that is reasonably

Marriage Leads to Housework, At Least for Women

Married men say they do less housework than unmarried cohabiting men, according to a new international study published in the Journal of Family Issues. Cohabiting women, however, report doing less housework than married women, and cohabiting men still do less than cohabiting women. The lead author of the study, according to USA Today, says “the

Scroll to Top