Adults with LGBTQ parents have been in the media lately talking about the varied meanings of genetic connections and donor kin, facing discrimination, the pressure to conform, finding community, and advocating for themselves and their families. Take a look at these good reads!
COLAGE, the national organization for people with LGBTQ parents, recently released an updated edition of its groundbreaking guide for donor-conceived people with LGBTQ parents. It’s an invaluable resource for donor-conceived youth and adults—but also feels critical for the parents and others supporting them.
This edition, we have news about the executive and mom who just became the first out queer woman to lead a Fortune 500 company (one best known for its butter), plus more news from round and about.
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.
A few victories to make your week!
And could a queer mom end up as prime minister of the U.K?
Here’s what’s happening, from LGBTQ families in the news, to political happenings, new research, and even some funny stuff!
Today’s piece is a guest post by Lara Lillibridge, whose memoir Girlish: Growing Up in a Lesbian Home, I reviewed yesterday. Here, she offers her thoughts on growing up with two moms and being a “lesbian tour guide” to the outside world. She reminds me, once again, that we parents have as much to learn from our children as they from us (maybe more), and we LGBTQ parents are wise to listen to the voices of those who grew up with LGBTQ parents. We and our own children will be better for it.
I’m always excited by the publication of memoirs about LGBTQ families, and I’m happy to be part of the blog tour for Lara Lillibridge’s memoir Girlish: Growing Up in a Lesbian Home (Skyhorse Publishing), on its launch date and book birthday. Girlish is not a comfortable tale. It is, however, a reminder that we LGBTQ parents are as flawed as any others, and we should not let some ideal of perfection force us or our children into hiding their stories.
We’ve got lots of international news this week, along with reflections by grown children of same-sex parents, and more!
Pull up a chair and have a read.
Posting was light here this week, since I dropped a very lengthy piece on LGBTQ-inclusive children’s books and wanted to give you all time to read it. The world moves on, however, so here are a few of the stories in the headlines.
