I wrote this piece just after the U.S. Supreme Court legalized marriage equality nationwide on June 26, 2015. I want to reshare it as we approach the 10-year anniversary, as a reminder of why so many of us queer parents and our children fought for marriage—and why marriage equality alone isn’t enough.
A new Nevada law will make it easier for nongestational LGBTQ parents to confirm their legal parentage via adoption, without burdensome and unnecessary requirements. Nevada becomes the 11th state to enact such legislation, less than two weeks after Vermont became the 10th.
The U.S. Supreme Court ruled yesterday to uphold Tennessee’s ban on gender-affirming health care for transgender youth. It’s an awful outcome that reveals the hypocrisy of conservatives’ talk about “parental rights”—but trans rights advocates are vowing to keep fighting.
Iowa State Senator Zach Wahls (D), whose 2011 speech to the Iowa legislature about growing up with two moms went viral (twice!) during the state’s marriage equality battles, has announced he is running for the U.S. Senate, challenging incumbent Joni Ernst (R).
U.S. Space Force Colonel Bree Fram, a decorated officer with more than 20 years of service, is being kicked out of the military simply for being trans. She’s also a parent, and has spoken about the negative impact of the administration’s anti-trans policy on her family.
The Republican governor of Vermont, Phil Scott, signed a bill May 22 that will make it easier for nongestational LGBTQ parents to confirm their legal parentage via adoption, without burdensome and unnecessary requirements.
Italy’s Constitutional Court has ruled that both mothers in same-sex couples must be allowed on their children’s birth certificates and be recognized as legal parents. The landmark ruling comes after the far-right government had forbidden nongestational mothers from being on their children’s birth certificates and even removed ones who were there.
U.S. Representative Angie Craig (D-MN), the first out lesbian mom—and grandmother—in Congress, announced her campaign for Senate Tuesday and cited her legal struggle to be a parent as evidence of her ability to fight despite long odds.
Uncle Bobby’s Wedding is among the LGBTQ-inclusive picture books in a case being heard today by the U.S. Supreme Court. I was the first journalist to cover the earliest attempt to censor it, in 2008, so I’m reposting my in-depth piece about that, which includes still-relevant insights from the author, editor, and library director.
The Ohio Supreme Court will consider a case tomorrow about the legal parentage of nongenetic/nongestational parents in same-sex couples who had children before they could legally wed. It underscores the pressing need for updated parentage legislation around the country.
