LGBTQ Parenting Roundup
Personal stories, political news, entertainment tidbits, and more that I haven’t covered elsewhere! A buffet for your reading pleasure!
Adoption
Cover Reveal: “A Kid of Their Own” Offers “Twice the Dads and Twice the Dad Jokes”
I’m very excited to be bringing you the official, full-cover reveal of A Kid of Their Own, by Megan Dowd Lambert, her second picture book about a group of barnyard friends and the two farmers—a gay couple—who care for them. Lambert also shares with Mombian readers a little about her motivations, the importance of language when talking about adoptive families, and why her fictional world includes both anthropomorphic animals and humans.
Watch: A Queer Couple’s Continuing Journey as Foster Parents
Nicole Opper and Kristan Cassady’s The F Word docuseries in 2017 showed us the beginning of their journey to parenthood through the foster-to-adoption process. Now, they’re back with Season Two, which continues their story and adds in the stories of others.
Reintroduced Bill to End Adoption and Foster Care Discrimination Does Much More than Before
For the sixth Congress in a row, the Every Child Deserves a Family Act (ECDF) has been introduced in an attempt to ensure that no child lacks for a home because of discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, or religion. This year’s version of the bill goes even further, however, offering new protections and resources.
Trump Administration Plans to Allow Discrimination in Adoption and Foster Care: Here’s What You Can Do
It’s only surprising if you weren’t paying attention. The Trump administration let slip last week that they are considering two paths to allowing discrimination against LGBTQ people and others in adoption and foster care, following up on what they’ve intended for a long time.
HHS Proposes Eliminating Data Collection on Sexual Orientation of Foster and Adoptive Youth, Parents
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) said this week that it wants to abandon the collection of foster care and adoption data that would have helped to more effectively serve LGBTQ youth.
Of Budget and Bias
President Trump’s proposed 2020 budget, released March 11, reinforces his intention to let foster care and adoption agencies discriminate against LGBTQ people and others in the name of religion, using taxpayer money. There is legislation pending that could stop these religious exemptions to nondiscrimination laws, however. Here’s what you need to know.
Michigan Cannot Fund Adoption Agencies that Discriminate Against LGBTQ People, Settlement Agrees
Two foster care and adoption agencies were violating Michigan’s nondiscrimination laws by refusing to work with same-sex couples, per the settlement of a case announced today by Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel.
The Costs of Starting a Queer Family
The always wonderful Nancy podcast from WNYC has just run a series on Queer Money Matters, about “the straight economy and how queer people navigate it.” Listen here to their episode on “Babies and Bills,” about the costs of starting a family when queer.
Share Your Story to Stop Adoption Discrimination
It’s legal to discriminate against LGBTQ parents, Jewish parents, and others in adoption and foster care, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). Just claim that serving them goes against your religious beliefs. A coalition of LGBTQ, civil rights, child welfare, and faith organizations is fighting this, however—but they need your stories to help change hearts and minds at an upcoming Congressional hearing.