If you are gay or lesbian and hoping to adopt a child, your rights vary widely from state to state. In Utah, you must be married before you can adopt a child--an impossibility if you are gay or lesbian and live in Utah, while in Florida, you cannot adopt at all. In Mississippi, you are free to adopt as long as you are single, while in New Jersey, your sexual preference does not factor into adoptions.
About
A 2007 Williams Institute study found that 65,000 adopted children in America live in a gay or lesbian home. While this only represents 4 percent of adopted children in America, the numbers reflect a clear desire on the part of many gays and lesbians to adopt, as well as a willingness to jump through the legal hoops necessary to do so.
Informal Policies
In many states, the laws regarding gay and lesbian adoption are vague and up for interpretation. While Louisiana permits both married couples and single people to adopt, the law neglects to mention gays and lesbians. However, according to Adoption.com, there are no recorded instances of any gays or lesbians adopting a child in Louisiana. While federal and state laws ultimately determine who can and cannot adopt a child, the vagueness of some state laws gives individual judges and adoption agencies a great deal of latitude in making the final call.
Anti-Discrimination Laws
Some states extend explicit rights to gay and lesbian couples wishing to adopt. New Jersey was the first state to forbid discrimination based on sexual orientation and marital status. As of 2010, the following 11 states and Washington D.C. now have laws banning discrimination against gays and lesbians in adoption proceedings: Maryland, New Jersey, Connecticut, New York, California, Massachusetts, Nevada, Illinois, Indiana, Pennsylvania and Vermont.
Adoption Agencies
According to CNN.com, in the 36 states without specific laws regarding gay and lesbian adoption, adoption agencies can make decisions based on personal beliefs. A survey conducted by the Evan B. Donaldson Adoption Institute found that 60 percent of adoption agencies accept applications from gays and lesbians. Twenty percent of the agencies surveyed prohibit gay and lesbian adoptions due to religious beliefs.
Second Parent Adoption
In many states, if you are gay or lesbian you can adopt a child on your own, but your partner cannot adopt the child without terminating your parental rights. According to the National Resource Center for Foster Care and Permanency Planning, this can create serious problems for gay or lesbian couples raising children together. In these states, only one parent in a two-parent household can consent to medical care for the child, or make legal decisions on behalf of the child.
Approximately half the states allow second parent adoptions. These adoptions allow the partner of the adoptive parent to adopt the child without terminating the adoptive parent's rights.
Special Needs
If you are gay or lesbian and hoping to adopt a special needs child, you may find the adoption process easier. The Evan B. Donaldson Institute reports that 85.3 percent of agencies serving special needs children accepted applications from gays and lesbians.
This article is intended as a general overview of gay and lesbian adoption rights, and should not replace the advice of a qualified legal professional.
References
- Reason.com: All Happy Families: The looming battle over gay parenting
- The Williams Institute: Adoption and Foster Care by Gay and Lesbian Parents in the United States
- Adoption.com: Gay Adoption
- CNN.com: Gay adoption: A new take on the American family; Taylor Gandossy; June 27, 2007
- Evan B. Donaldson Adoption Institute: Adoption by Lesbians and Gays
