LGBTQ Parenting Roundup
Personal stories, political news, entertainment tidbits, and more that I haven’t covered elsewhere! A buffet for your reading pleasure!
Politics and Law
State Dept. Says Baby of Same-Sex, U.S. Citizen Parents Is Not a Citizen
A fourth married, same-sex couple is suing the U.S. State Department for refusing to recognize the U.S. citizenship of their child—in this case, despite the fact that both parents are U.S. citizens. The department is treating the child as “born out of wedlock.”
Watch: 12-Year-Old with Two Moms Speaks Out for City Nondiscrimination Ordinance
Twelve-year-old Jak Guimbellot lives in Kansas with his two moms—and spoke out recently at a local city council meeting, urging them to pass an ordinance that bans anti-LGBTQ discrimination in housing, employment, and public accommodations.
New Proposed Labor Department Rule Has Religion-Based Discrimination Baked In
I’ve written numerous times before about the Trump administration’s efforts to allow discrimination against LGBTQ people and others in adoption and foster care and in health care. Now, they’re trying to allow similar discrimination in employment by an even wider range of companies.
Lesbian Mom Becomes Trump’s 1st LGBTQ Judge
It took a while, but Mary Rowland, the first LGBTQ person nominated by President Trump to a federal judgeship, was finally confirmed last week by the U.S. Senate. How did Rowland, who once volunteered for the Obama campaign, manage to get appointed by Trump?
In the Wake of Violence Yet Again
I have written about far too many mass shootings in the United States since I started this blog 14 years ago. I feel like I am repeating myself when I post about my fears—for my son, for all our children, for all of the children who will grow up without one or more parents lost to gun violence. When we tire of talking about it, however, we give the victory to those who support lax gun regulations or who use gun violence to express hatred and bigotry. Forgive me some repetition, therefore.
Dads’ Battle for Daughter’s Citizenship Shows that Marriage Equality Fight in U.S. Is Not Over
A married same-sex couple is suing the U.S. State Department for refusing to recognize the U.S. citizenship of their child despite the fact that both parents are U.S. citizens.
Connecticut and Oregon Enact Paid Family Leave Laws that Let Employees Define Their Own Families
Connecticut and Oregon each enacted laws in June that extend paid family leave with broad definitions of who’s in a family, among other new provisions.
Parentage Bills to Help LGBTQ Families and Others Fail in New York, Rhode Island
It’s been a disappointing few days for legislation that would have helped LGBTQ families, as bills that would have more effectively protected families formed through assisted reproduction failed in both New York and Rhode Island.
Oklahoma Supreme Court: Nonbiological Parents Have “Complete Parity”
The Oklahoma Supreme Court not only ruled in favor of a nonbiological mother in a child custody case yesterday, but established guidelines for future cases, writing conclusively that “A non-biological same-sex parent stands in parity with a biological parent.”