LGBTQ Parenting Roundup
As July rolls on, here are a few news items for and about LGBTQ parents that I haven’t yet posted about. Catch up on what’s happening!
Advocating
Listen: “We the People” Teaches Civics Through Song (with More Than a Little Help from Some Queer Moms)
Imagine: U.S. civics lessons reframed as a call to action, set to rap, R&B, and pop music sung by some of today’s top artists, and skillfully animated, in a show created by Emmy Award winner (and lesbian mom) Chris Nee, with a theme song by Grammy Award winner (and bisexual mom) Meshell Ndegeocello, and an episode featuring Grammy Award winner (and lesbian mom) Brandi Carlile. Happy July 4, everyone—this thing exists! Listen to Carlile’s song here and learn how to catch the rest of this great new show.
Watch: Two Moms on Their Civil Union, Marriage, and Family
Fran and Anna Simon were the first same-sex couple in Colorado to get a civil union in 2013 and the first in Denver to get a marriage license in 2014. For Pride, they spoke with the City of Denver’s “I Am Denver” project about their family, their activism, and the protections LGBTQ families still need. Watch the video here.
Community Members Speak Up in Support of Library Children’s Wing Pride Display
A week after two county commissioners asked a local Pennsylvania library to remove a Pride Month display of children’s books from its children’s wing, community members showed overwhelming support of the display at a county meeting.
Supreme Court Rules Narrowly in Favor of Religious Foster Care Agency but Says Nondiscrimination Laws Still Generally Apply
In a unanimous decision, the U.S. Supreme Court has just ruled in Fulton v. City of Philadelphia in favor of a faith-based foster care agency that refused to contract with same-sex parents. While this is not the win we might have wanted, it is a narrow loss that one LGBTQ legal expert is still calling “a huge victory.”
Maine Becomes 10th State to Allow LGBTQ Parents to Establish Legal Parentage with Simple Form
Maine has become the 10th state to allow LGBTQ couples, regardless of gender or genetic connection to their children, to establish legal parentage with an easy, free form that can be completed at the hospital right after a child’s birth. This form, unlike a birth certificate, is equivalent to a court decree.
County Commissioners Request Removal of Pride Display in Library Children’s Wing
Two of the three commissioners in Lycoming County, Pennsylvania, have asked a local library to remove from the children’s wing a Pride Month display featuring several LGBTQ-inclusive picture books. Many others in the community are rallying in support of the books.
“Everyone Was In to Do the Right and Just Thing for LGBTQ+ Families” in New Connecticut Parentage Law
Yesterday, Connecticut Governor Ned Lamont (D) signed the Connecticut Parentage Act (CPA), which better protects all children, regardless of the circumstances of their birth or the marital status, gender, or sexual orientation of their parents, and gives nonbiological/nongestational parents a simpler, faster way to establish legal parentage.
Federal Bill to End Adoption and Foster Care Discrimination Introduced for 7th Time
A federal bill has just been reintroduced that would prohibit discrimination in foster care and adoption on the basis of sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, or religion. The John Lewis Every Child Deserves a Family Act (ECDF) is named for the civil rights leader and congressman who was an original co-sponsor the previous six times the bill was introduced. Might it pass this seventh time through Congress?
Connecticut Senate Unanimously Approves Bill Updating Parentage Laws to Protect Children of All Families
The Connecticut Senate last night unanimously passed the Connecticut Parentage Act (CPA), landmark legislation to update the state’s laws and better protect all children, regardless of the circumstances of their birth or the marital status, gender, or sexual orientation of their parents. Among other things, it gives nonbiological/nongestational parents a simpler way to establish a legal parent-child relationship, without a home study or court hearing. The bill passed the House last month and now goes to Governor Ned Lamont (D) for signing.