Florida’s “Don’t Say Gay” bill has passed the state Senate and will almost certainly be signed into law. Bills are moving forward in Idaho and Alabama that would make providing gender-affirming care to minors a felony. And these are only three of a growing number of states that have passed or are trying to pass such repressive laws. How can we address this onslaught against LGBTQ children and youth?
Two recent state supreme court rulings, in Alaska and Idaho, underline the wildly different requirements same-sex parents may face to prove their parenthood.
When Natalie Perry’s dad came out as gay to her, her older sister, and their mom 20 years ago, they all had to stay in the closet or he could have lost his job as a chief judge for the Idaho State Court of Appeals. Watch her TEDx talk on life as part of a closeted LGBTQ family.
What a week! Same-sex couples can now marry in Idaho and Nevada, adding to the boatload of states that have gained marriage equality in the past few days. Let’s look at what the latest court decision said about children.
It’s been a great few days for marriage equality, with an Arkansas state judge and a federal judge in Idaho striking down those states’ bans on marriage for same-sex couples. As with similar rulings in other states, the welfare of children weighed heavily in the judges’ decisions.
Same-sex couples seeking marriage equality in both Florida and Idaho were in court recently to make their cases. As in California, Georgia, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Virginia, among other states, parents were among the majority of the plaintiffs. Why? Some of the plaintiffs and an organizational leader behind one of the cases offer complementary perspectives.
Great news from Idaho this morning: The state Supreme Court ruled yesterday that a person can petition to do a second-parent adoption of another’s child, even if the two adults are not married.
Not to be outdone by Illinois, Hawaii just moved closer to becoming the 16th state to pass a bill in favor of marriage equality. The Hawaii House approved a bill Friday night (Hawaii-Aleutian Standard Time) that now must now go back to the Senate for re-approval. Jumping on the I-state momentum, four same-sex couples in Idaho yesterday also sued for the right to marry.
Two days ago, California became the second state to legalize marriage of same-sex couples. Today marks the fourth anniversary of the first legal marriages of same-sex couples in Massachusetts; the 54th anniversary of Brown v. Board of Education, and the 18th anniversary of when the World Health Organization removed homosexuality from its list of mental
