LGBT adoption is the adoption of children by lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people (LGBT). This may be in the form of joint adoption by same-sex couples, adoption by one partner of same-sex couples from other biological children (adopted children) and adoption by one LGBT person. Joint adoption by same-sex couples is legal in 27 countries and in some sub-national areas. Furthermore, 5 countries have legalized some form of step adoption. Against LGBT adoption questions do same-sex couples have the ability to be adequate parents (see LGBT care) while others oppose whether the laws of nature imply that adopted children have a natural right to be raised by heterosexual parents. Since constitutions and laws usually fail to address LGBT people's adoption rights, court decisions often determine whether they can serve as parents either individually or as a couple.
Video LGBT adoption
LGBT parenting
The existing research body on outcomes for children with LGBT parents includes a limited study that considers specific cases of adoption. Additionally, where research does mention adoption, they often fail to distinguish between outcomes for children unrelated to children in their original family or stepfamily, leading to research on LGBT parenting cases that are more commonly used against LGBT opponents' claims -adoption.. One study has answered the question directly, evaluating the outcomes of people adopted for less than 3 years who have been placed in one of 56 lesbian and gay households since the baby. Although the sample is small, and the fact that children are not yet aware of their adoption status or the dynamics of gender development, this study found no significant relationship between parental sexual orientation and child adjustment!
Maps LGBT adoption
Debate
Arguments
The adoption of children by LGBT people is a matter of active debate. In the United States, for example, laws to stop practices have been introduced in many jurisdictions; such efforts have been largely defeated. Prior to 1973, state courts generally banned gay and lesbian individuals from parenthood, especially through adoption.
There is agreement between the parties arguing, however, that the welfare of the children alone should dictate the policy. Supporters of LGBT adoption suggest that many children need homes and claim that because childcare is not associated with sexual orientation, the law should allow them to adopt children. Opponents, on the other hand, point out that the alleged prevalence of greater depression, drug use, promiscuity and suicide among homosexuals (and a greater prevalence of domestic violence) may affect children or that the absence of male- men and women during child development can lead to inability to adapt. Catholic Answers, a Catholic religious group, in its 2004 report on gay marriage aimed at parenting by homosexual couples through artificial adoption or insemination. This refers to studies that have found a higher than average rate of abuse among heterosexual step families compared to parents of the same gender. The American Psychological Association notes that an ongoing longitudinal study found that no lesbian mothers have harassed their children. It states that concerns of increased risk of sexual harassment by gay parents are not supported by research.
Some professional organizations have made statements to defend adoptions by same-sex couples. The American Psychological Association has supported adoption by same-sex couples, citing social prejudices as harming the psychological health of lesbians and gays while noting there is no evidence that their caring is causing harm. The American Medical Association has issued a similar position to support the adoption of second parents by same-sex couples, stating that a lack of formal recognition may lead to disparities in health services for children of same-sex parents.
The latest Catholic adoption community in Britain announced that they would stop looking for homes for children if forced by law to place children with same-sex couples. The Muslim Council of England also sided with Catholic adoption institutions on this issue. Boston Charity also ends the mission of establishing adoption work rather than obeying state laws that contradict its religious practices.
Proponents of adoption by gay parents usually cite the following argument:
- The right of a child to have a family, guardian or person who can keep their welfare
- Human rights - the right of children and parents to have a family life
- There is little or no difference between children raised by the same partner or righteous partner. For that reason, the parents' sexual orientation has no relevance when it comes to raising a child
- Evidence confirming that even if they oppose LGBT care, same-sex couples can provide good conditions for raising a child
- For children, adoption is a better alternative to orphanages
- Less formalities for stepparents in everyday life, as well as situations of death of child biological parents
- In some countries, same-sex persons may adopt, therefore prohibiting LGBT care (especially adoption) is artificial
Opponents of adoption by LGBT people usually cite the following argument:
- Co-same couples will make children develop undesirable characters specified
- Parents of the same gender have no parent competencies
- Abuse case of parents
- Religious reasons
- Child rights infringement
Public opinion
A 2006 poll by the Pew Research Center found a close separation of gay adoption among the United States public, while a 2007 poll by CNN and Opinion Research Corp. said 57% of respondents felt gays should have the right to adopt and 40% said that they do not. In the UK in 2007, 64% of people said they thought gay couples should be allowed to adopt and 32% said they should not do it. 55% of respondents think that male partners should be able to adopt and 59% of people think that lesbian couples should be able to adopt. In Brazil, a 2010 poll asked, "Do you support or oppose allowing gay couples to adopt children?" The poll found that 51% opposed adoption by same-sex couples and 39% supported it. A poll conducted in late 2006 at the request of the European Commission shows that Polish public opinion generally opposes same-sex marriage and adoption by gay couples. The Eurobarometer 66 poll found that 74% of Poles opposed same-sex marriage and 89% opposed adoption by same-sex couples.
National debates
As of June 2018, there was a national debate about LGBT parents in the following countries:
- Chile
- Czech Republic (adoption step-child or partial)
- Hungary
Legal status
Full joint adoption by same-sex couples is currently legal in 26 countries:
- Andorra (2014)
- Argentina (2010)
- Australia (first jurisdiction of 2002, last jurisdiction 2018)
- Austria (2016)
- Belgium (2006)
- Brazil (2010)
- Canada (first jurisdiction of 1996, last jurisdiction of 2011)
- Colombia (2015)
- Denmark (2010)
- Greenland (2016)
- Faroe Islands (2017)
- Finland (2017)
- French (2013)
- Germany (2017)
- Iceland (2006)
- Ireland (2015)
- Luxembourg (2015)
- Malta (2014)
- Dutch (2001)
- New Zealand (2013)
- Norway (2009)
- Portugal (2016)
- South Africa (2002)
- Spanish (2005)
- Sweden (2003)
- United Kingdom
- England and Wales (2005)
- Scotland (2009)
- Northern Ireland (2013)
- United States (first jurisdiction of 1993, final jurisdiction 2016)
- Uruguay (2009)
Full joint adoption by same-sex couples is currently legal in the following sub-national jurisdictions:
- British and British Foreign Affairs Dependencies:
- Bermuda (2015)
- Gibraltar (2014)
- Guernsey (2017)
- Isle of Man (2011)
- Jersey (2012)
- Pitcairn Islands (2015)
- Falkland Islands (2017)
- Saint Helena, Ascension, and Tristan da Cunha (2017)
- Mexico:
- Coahuila (2014)
- Mexico City (2010)
- Campeche (2016)
- Colima (2016)
- MichoacÃÆ'¡ n (2016)
- Morelos (2016)
- Veracruz (2016)
- QuerÃÆ' Â © taro (2017)
- Caribbean Netherlands (2012)
The following countries permit the adoption of children in which a spouse in a relationship can adopt a child who is adopted naturally and is adopted by his/her spouse:
- Estonia (2016)
- Italy (2016 - on a case by case basis)
- Slovenia (2011)
- Switzerland (2018)
Since 2014 in Croatia, similar institutions called partners-trustees exist. This allows spouses who are not biological parents of their partner's children or children to obtain temporary or permanent parental responsibility.
Africa
South Africa
South Africa is the only African country to allow joint adoption by same-sex couples. The 2002 decree of the Constitutional Court in the case of Du Toit v Minister of Welfare and Population Development amended the Childcare Act, 1983 to enable adoption of adoption and adoption of stepparents by "same-sex couples." The Childcare Act has since been superseded by the Children's Act, 2005, which allows for joint adoption by "partners in a permanent household life partnership", whether adoption of the same or opposite sex, and parents by someone who is a "permanent" domestic spouse "of the child's parents today.Primary marriage has been valid since 2006, and is equivalent to same-sex marriage for all purposes, including adoption.
America
Chile
In Chile, same-sex couples are allowed to propose adoption of a child. If applicants are approved as appropriate for adoption, legally only one of them will be the legal parent of the child. A 2017 survey, showing that 45% of Chilean population support the same adoption of sex, while 50% oppose.
Colombian
On November 4, 2015, in a Constitutional Court ruling 6-2, Colombia decided to allow adoption by LGBT people. The decision was issued before same-sex marriage became valid in the country on April 28, 2016.
Mexico
In Mexico City, the Federal District Legislative Council passed a law on December 21, 2009 allowing same-sex couples to adopt children. Eight days later, Head of Government ("Mayor") Marcelo Ebrard signed the bill into law, which officially came into force on March 4, 2010.
On November 24, 2011, the Supreme Court of Coahuila dismissed state law prohibiting same-sex couples to adopt, urging state legislatures to amend adoption laws as soon as possible. On February 12, 2014, the state congress strongly approved the move more than two years after the Supreme Court ruling.
On 3 February 2017 SCJN emit a thesis 08/2017 where it is stated that the LGBT community family does not end with a spouse, but it also extends to the right to own and raise children. Therefore, LGBT couples who wish to form a family and adopt children will be legally protected and can not be restricted by government entities.
United States
Uruguay
The government-sponsored adoption law in Uruguay allowed LGBT adoption to be approved by the lower house on 28 August 2009, and by the Senate on 9 September 2009. In October 2009, the law was signed by the President and in effect. According to Equipos Mori Poll, 53% of Uruguayis opposed the same sex adoption of 39% who supported it. The Interconsult poll made in 2008 said that 49% opposed the same sex adoption of the 35% who supported it.
Asia
LGBT rights for adoption of children in Asia are almost nonexistent, except in Israel. Some Asian countries still criminalize same-sex activities, have no anti-discrimination laws, which are barriers to legislation for LGBT adoption.
Israel
The Israeli Supreme Court ruling of January 2005 allowed the adoption of stepchildren for same-sex couples. Israel previously allowed limited co-guardianship custodial rights for non-biological parents. In February 2008, an Israeli court ruled that same-sex couples were now allowed to adopt children regardless of whether the child was biologically related or not to parents. This marks the boundary of water in granting equal rights to all gay people in Israel.
Europe
In February 2006, the French Cassation Court ruled that both partners in same-sex relationships may have custody of their partner's biological child. The result comes from a case in which a woman seeks to grant custody of her two daughters to her partner, with whom she is in a civil union. However, in the case of adoption, in February 2007, the same court ruled against a lesbian couple in which one partner tried to adopt a child from another. The court stated that the female partner is unrecognizable unless the mother withdraws her own custody. On May 17, 2013, French President FranÃÆ'§ois Hollande signed into law a law that opened the marriage and adoption rights attributed to her for same-sex couples.
In 1998, a nursing school teacher from Lons-le-Saunier, living as a spouse with another woman, had submitted an authorization to adopt a child from Jura's local partition. The adoption council recommends opposing authorization because the child will lack a father's reference, and thus the president of the dÃÆ' Â © partement decides to oppose authorization. The case is filed to an administrative court and ends in the presence of the State Council, which acts as the highest administrative tribunal, who rules over the woman. The European Court of Human Rights concluded that these acts and decisions constitute a violation of Article 14 of the European Convention on Human Rights taken together with Article 8.
On 2 June 2006, the Icelandic Parliament unanimously passed a proposal accepting adoption, nurturing, and insemination treatments aided for same-sex couples on the same basis as heterosexual couples. The law came into force on 27 June 2006.
In Bulgaria, according to the Ministry of Justice, the law on adoption "has no norm, regarding the sexual orientation of individuals". Therefore, one gay person or same-sex couples can adopt.
On 17 May 2013, the Portuguese parliament approved the draft law in the first reading allowing "mutual adoption" of a biological child or adoption of a spouse or same-sex couplet, in which the spouse or spouse is the only legally recognized child of the child (eg mothers with natural fathers are not registered). However, in October 2013 lawmakers opposed to the bill proposed a referendum on the issue and killed the motion to get a second vote in plenary; the possible motion of the referendum was then considered, but the Constitutional Court declared unconstitutional. On March 14, 2014, the original bill was rejected in the second reading. On November 20, 2015, 5 proposals from several left-wing parties were well-chosen by the new parliament as a result of the October 4 election.
In July 2014 through the Life Partnership Act, Croatia recognizes an institution similar to the adoption of a step-child called partner-trustee. Partners who are not child biological parents may share parental responsibilities with parents or biological parents if they approve it, or if the court decides that it is in the best interest of a child. In addition, parents or biological parents may temporarily provide couples who are not biological parents who are full of parental responsibilities. A partner who is not a biological parent can also obtain permanent parental responsibility through a partner-trusting institution if the biological parents of a child have died, or remarkably if the second biological parent of a child is unknown, and if the court deciding it is in the best interest of a child.
In January 2015, the Austrian Constitutional Court found the existing law on adoption to be unconstitutional and ordered the law to be amended by December 31, 2015 to allow for joint adoption by same-sex couples in Austria.
On April 6, 2015, the Family and Family Relationship Bill 2015 was passed by Parliament in March 2015 which extended full adoption rights for couples living together and civilian-sponsored partners enacted by the President of Ireland. The law came into force one year later on April 6, 2016.
On November 20, 2015, the Portuguese Parliament approved; by 141 votes against 87 with 2 abstentions; the diploma given by all parties (except the right-wing P-F) to allow same-sex adoption. On 26 January 2016, conservative Portuguese President Anibal Cavaco Silva vetoed the bill and a week later the Portuguese Parliament overwritten the veto. The law came into force on 1 March 2016.
On June 22, 2016, Italy's Supreme Court of Cassation upheld a lower court's decision to approve a request for a lesbian to adopt his partner's daughter. The prosecutor has filed an appeal against the Rome appellate court decision. The decision by the Supreme Court sets precedent.
Oceania
Australia
In Australia, same-sex adoption is legal in all states and territories since April 2018.
New Zealand
The Marriage Amendment (2013 Definition) Law, which entered into force on 19 August 2013, allows for same-sex marriage and allows same-sex married couples to jointly adopt children. Previously, an LGBT could adopt children, but same-sex couples could not adopt together.
There is currently no particular obstacle preventing an LGBT from adopting children, except that a man can not adopt a girl. The same-sex marriage law is in effect since August 19, 2013, and since then married couples can adopt children together. Unmarried married couples and couples in civil unity can now jointly adopt children, under New Zealand High Court's decision in December 2015. The ban violates New Zealand's 1990 New Zealand Rights Act. Minimum age to adopt at New Zealand is 20 years old for related children, and 25 years or child ages plus 20 years (whichever is greater) for unrelated children.
Legal summary by jurisdiction
See also
- Emma Rose's adoption process
- Heterosexism
- LGBT Rights
- LGBT adoption in Europe
- Similar adoption in Brazil
- same-sex marriage and civil union
- Mommy Mommy - a documentary about the adoption lesbian couple
- Preacher's Sons - a documentary about gay lifters
Further reading
-
Lerner, Brenda Wilmoth & amp; K. Lee Lerner (eds) (2006). Gender issues and sexuality: important primary sources . Thomson Gale. ISBN: 1-4144-0325-9. CS1 maint: Additional text: list author (link) The collection and reading of primary resources. Library of Congress. Jefferson or Adams Bldg General or Area Studies Reading Rms - Lerner, Brenda Wilmoth & amp; K. Lee Lerner (eds) (2006). Family in the community: an important primary source . Thomson Gale. ISBN: 1-4144-0330-5. CS1 maint: Additional text: author list (links) Collection and reading of primary resources. Library of Congress. Jefferson or Adams Bldg General or Area Studies Reading Rms
- Stacey, J & amp; Davenport, E. (2002) Queer Families Quack Back, at: D. Richardson & amp; S. Seidman (Eds) Handbook of Lesbian and Gay Studies. (London, SAGE Publications), 355-374.
- New Zealand Law Commission: Adoption - Option for Reform: Wellington: New Zealand Commission Preliminary Paper Commission No. 38: 1999: ISBNÃ, 1-877187-44-5
References
External links
- Gay.com - Adoption and Care - Latest News and Events that relate to the rights and responsibilities of same-sex parents in adopting and becoming parents
- Canada.com "In Family Ways" - News stories about gay and lesbian lifting families, and replacement families and donors
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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