L ast week, the University unveiled a study analyzing the decorations of children's bedrooms, sampling from a group of partnered heterosexual and lesbian parents. The study concluded that there were slight variations in the how the rooms were decorated: Heterosexual parents tended to decorate their daughters' rooms more femininely. In the boys' rooms, the study found no apparent gender difference between lesbian and straight parents.
This study is a new look at how gender stereotypes have evolved in diverse households. A more comprehensive research summary compiled for the American Psychological Association by University Psychology Prof. Charlotte J. Patterson reports that empirical data show that children are unaffected by their parents' sexual orientation.
The day after the bedroom report was announced, a federal judge upheld a Florida law that prohibits gay and lesbian couples from adopting children. Florida's statute unequivocally prohibits single or coupled homosexuals from adopting, even if they're otherwise qualified to care for a child. The judge ruled that disallowing gays to adopt is "in the best interest of the children of Florida."
The decision that adoption by homosexual couples was not in the best interest of children is offensive and stands in stark contrast to Patterson's research, which reviewed more than 40 studies that had been conducted over 30 years.
Discussed in these studies were a host of issues germane to the adoptive process. Adoption cases across the country have raised these same issues when advocates of traditional families have spoken out against the deleterious effects on children raised in gay households. Patterson's results conclusively showed that, while unconventional parenting environments may create differences among children, these differences are benign and do not impede children's social and mental growth.
Other concerns have been raised about whether gay and lesbian parents are mentally fit to parent. A study released at a recent APA conference, as reported in Sunday's San Francisco Chronicle, said that homosexual parents might sometimes make overzealous attempts to ensure the well-being of their children. This excessive attention manifests itself in PTA membership and volunteer activities, which helps the entire community, not just one child. The same study also pointed out that homosexual parents may be gentler: fewer than 15 percent used physical punishment, while more than 60 percent of heterosexual parents did.
Patterson's summary also dispelled two key arguments against gay adoption: that homosexual parents encourage their children to be gay and that gay parents are more likely to sexually abuse their children. Children raised by gay and lesbian parents were just as, but no more, likely to identify as homosexual after the age of 17 as children raised in heterosexual families. Studies also show that gay men are no more likely to sexually abuse their children.
In the Florida case, the judge said that "it is undisputed that there is no fundamental right to adopt... Adoption is a privilege created by statute and not by common law." Though this may be true, there is no rational basis for a state to deny the "privilege" of adoption to their homosexual citizens; homophobia is not a rational basis. Courts should consider only the children in determining custody issues. A child's best interests are met in a home with loving parents, and thus courts should approve any legitimate petition to adopt, regardless of the petitioner's sexuality.
Several other states are recognizing the value and legitimacy of gay and lesbian parenting. In 2000, California granted homosexual parents the same tax benefits as heterosexual ones. The Human Rights Campaign, a gay and lesbian advocacy organization, has listed 20 states and the District of Columbia as open states, meaning that gays and lesbians have successfully adopted children there.
In the fight for gay and lesbian equality, opponents lead battle cries of "no special status" for homosexuals. Outrageous statutes like Florida's, though, do give us a special status: We are second-class citizens. Gay and lesbian parents must be able to adopt, not only because legitimate psychological research shows no ill effects for children, but also because gay and lesbian parents can choose to be responsible, capable parents. We deserve better.
(Matt Pecori is a third-year Architecture student. He is president of the LGBTU at U.Va.)
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