In a case with horrible implications for LGBTQ families, an Oklahoma judge has ruled that a married, nonbiological mom has no parental rights to the child she and her wife created and were raising together, but the couple’s sperm donor does. Here’s what happened, and what other same-sex couples need to do to protect their own families.
An Oklahoma judge has vacated her earlier decision that ordered a nongestational mother removed from her child’s birth certificate. This means the mom can stay on the birth certificate, but still does not guarantee her parental rights. It’s a case all queer parents should note carefully.
A divorce case playing out in Oklahoma offers a frightening reminder of why nonbiological/nongestational parents in same-sex couples need to get confirmatory adoptions, court orders, or equivalents, even if they are married and on their children’s birth certificates.
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.”
A few victories to make your week!
And could a queer mom end up as prime minister of the U.K?
Will Oklahoma, Kansas, and Colorado become the next states to allow adoption and foster care agencies to discriminate against LGBTQ prospective parents, youth, and others who don’t align with their religious beliefs?
It’s time to round up some of the stories I haven’t covered here already. There’s lots going on, so have a read while you’re in between holiday preparations.
Not one, but two videos have surfaced in the past few days showing children of same-sex parents standing up for their families in Utah. Yesterday, 26-year-old Griffin Fearonce spoke with Utah’s KUTV about his lesbian moms. This followed Friday’s inspiring speech by 12-year-old Riley Hackford-Peer at a marriage equality rally. Marriage equality opponents are trotting out the old and unsubstantiated argument that children do best when raised by a mother and a father. First-person stories from those with same-sex parents are a good antidote.
Tonight, I am thinking of the friends I have whose family and friends live in Moore, Oklahoma. A tornado ripped through and destroyed two elementary schools, a hospital, and unnamed other buildings earlier today. The latest numbers from MSNBC say that seven elementary school students are among the dead, and another 30 are unaccounted for.
U.S. Rep. Jerrold Nadler (D-N.Y.) introduced a bill to amend the Fair Housing Act to ban housing discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity. The commissioners of Kissimmee, Florida voted to allow city employees to cover their unmarried domestic partners under the city’s health and dental insurance plan. The Oklahoma state Senate approved an
