Adoption rights by homosexuals

Gays and Lesbians and their Struggle to Form Families

Gays and lesbians are becoming more and more tolerated as well as incorporated into today’s culture, but problems remain when it comes to gay partners forming their own families. In most jurisdictions in the United States, gay couples will adopt children much like heterosexual couples. This contentious topic raised a variety of arguments; with some people claiming that homosexual adoption should be legalized at the national level, while another segment of the population prefers that the issue should be banned in all states (Sabrina., Tavernise). There are logical and persuasive reasons to legalize and allow homosexuals couples to adopt children, but for some individuals, these reasons are not enough. Here, the main issues that need everyone to address and answer are; what does the child need? Do homosexual couples show a sense of sensitivity, care as well as nurture to others? Do the gay and lesbian individuals possess parenting qualities? Based on a positive reply to these questions, homosexual couples who want to adopt a child should be given the right to adopt because they can positively influence the child, they are no different with heterosexual couples in raising a child and they can help decrease the orphans of United States (Perrin, E. C., and B. S. Siegel, p. e1376).

Positive Impact of Homosexual Couples on Children

Recent research advice theoretical and policy debates about the adoption of children by homosexual couples. There are several documentations about the sound development of kids by gay and lesbian couples in numerous studies showing that children raised by homosexual couples have been positively impacted by various psychological measures. Studies reveal that kids raised by homosexual couples do not differ in numbers of psychological behaviors from the kids born and raised by heterosexual couples. This includes behavioral orientation and gender role behaviors and activities (Golombok, Susan et al, p. 464). For this reason, homosexual couples are capable in parenting and they have demonstrated parental skill and possess parental experience. A Recent survey conducted in the United States of America has demonstrated that children raised by homosexual couples are more tolerant and they are open-minded (Cody, Patricia A. et al, p. 9). This is due to the positive influence towards the societal issues instilled by the homosexual couples to the children. Due to this, allowing lesbian and gay couples to adopt will break the prejudice in the society concerning homosexual couple’s adoption. In addition, it will create a society that understands the need of diversity, therefore creating a strong and better society. Moreover, lifting bans on homosexual adoption serves as the step towards achieving more diverse and tolerant society where no citizen faces discrimination.

Homosexual Couples as Good Parents

There is enough evidence that demonstrates that homosexual couples can be good in parenting just like their heterosexual couples. In reality, studies reveal that homosexual couples are better motivated as well as committed to parenting than heterosexual couples, because they make a choice to have children, unlike the over fifty percent of heterosexual couples who stumble to parenthood by accident (Ball M, Carlos A, p. 122). In many occasion, homosexual couples form the relationship that is more stable than that formed by the heterosexual couples, giving adopted children a secure environment and emotionally stable homes. Furthermore, the need of the children plays a major role in homosexual adoption. In most cases, the adopted children of homosexual couples were not snatched or stolen from happy heterosexual homes. Most of the adopted children would come from the foster homes, orphanage or even from single parents who are unable to cope with the increasing needs of the children. In this case, the family of homosexual couples is better than the alternatives (Ball M, Carlos A, p. 134).

Benefits of Homosexual Adoption

Moreover, given the shortage of heterosexual couples willing to adopt children, homosexual adoption would provide the adopted children with loving and caring homes they have always needed. In this case, the situation is good to the children who want a loving home and the homosexual couples who want to raise children, as well as the society as the number of children in the orphanage will decrease. In addition, the child will get the opportunity of benefiting from the newly acquired parents both in terms of health and financial support. Given that there are many kids that are off for adoption, homosexual couples are able to pour all their love and care for their adopted children through tangible and non-tangible things (Golombok, Susan et al, p. 458). Thus, allowing homosexual couples to adopt will serve as an answer to the shortage of adoptive families in the United States of America and reduction of children in the foster care system and orphanage homes. Furthermore, deprived and orphaned children deserve a family regardless of being homosexual or heterosexual family. Having a family of homosexual orientation should be much better to the children compared to any foster care system. This will possibly provide the children with full-time parents, in contrast to many who are being raised in foster care system or orphanage system. Moreover, children raised in foster system and orphanage have high chances of having lower education success and poor behaviors, leading to an increase in the number of juvenile cases. Due to this, allowing homosexual couples to adopt children will provide the children with a loving and caring environment to positively impact on the academic performance and behaviors than foster care system and orphanage homes (April, Martin, Ph.D.).

Opposition to Homosexual Adoption

Large and increasing evidence demonstrates that the homosexual couples and families are not the best environment for children development. In particular, the work of Glenn, Gary has contributed handsomely to this conclusion. Usually, the opposition of homosexual couples adopting children falls under two main categories; homosexual couples adopting children is wrong as a matter of principality and they are wrong because they are not a good environment for the children to be brought up in (Arthur, Dobrin D.S.W.). Based on the matter of principality, children are entitled to both biological parents of opposite sex. Given that the children are conceived by a woman and a man, the children should, therefore, be brought up by a mother and father. This can be attributed to the need of role models when growing up, the children need the existence of both male and female parents. In most situations, male children without fathers have the tendency of underachieving, especially when there is a shortage of male teachers in their primary level of their education. In this regard, the possibilities of both single and homosexual couples adopting a child are ruled out. In addition, as Christians, the values that majority of individual have are guided by the Christian teaching (Baiocco, Roberto et al, p. 212) This is regardless if the individuals go to church or not. For this reason, homosexual couples may have conflicting roles in the context of two parents which is axiomatic. In this, the situation may invoke the fifth commandment, which is to honor parents, the father, and the mother. In this regard, homosexual parenting runs fundamentally counter to many of the religious views and values of many people (Andrea, Stone). Thus, legalizing homosexual adoption will be offending the cherished values and beliefs of many individuals and further leads to undermining the key role played by the religious values as moral bedrock in the society. Several religious leaders, including Jewish, Christians, and Islamic have voiced their concern against homosexual couples.

Potential Negative Effects and Concerns

Moreover, the possibilities of raising homosexual children are increased. Since homosexual couples raise children as their own, the thought of having one partnership model will, therefore, develop the children to be homosexual as well. This is one of the most common arguments that have kept many people wondering. Due to this, the majority of individuals fears for their children being adopted by homosexual couples, therefore the need of declining homosexual couples to adopt. Furthermore, religious adoption centers play an important duty in making sure that deprived children experience love and care in their newly found homes. Thus, an increase in the population of adopted children will leave those who are not adopted in an unsatisfactory care system (Baiocco, Roberto et al, 210) In addition; these agencies will shut down or easily give up on children instead of waiting to be forced by the legislation to give out the children to homosexual families. As a matter of fact, the situation in already happens: religious centers in most parts of America have shut down as results of the legislation laws that would oblige the agencies to hand over the children to homosexual families. Due to this, enforcing legislation would worsen the situation for the deprived children to find loving and secure homes and families.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the legalization of homosexual adoption in all states would be advantageous to our society, having a caring and loving home in which deprived, needy, and orphaned children can go is good for the new family and the society. In addition, it will reduce the chances of the juvenile as results of horrible condition of the orphanage and foster care system. Children raised by homosexual couples would not be harmfully affected by the sexual orientation of the parents and they would be thankful for having a loving and caring family as they will be brought up in a strong and stable family which provides them with secure and caring homes. Any individual who have the abilities to bring up a kid in a loving, caring, and secure environment, and above all, have desires of having a child deserves to be given a chance parenting and their chances of parenting should not be denied. Homosexual couples are likely to provide full parenting to the adopted children who in turn instill good behaviors and improvement in academic performance of the children. Thus, homosexual couples adoption acts as a positive solution to the majority of children that go each year without a loving, caring, and secured home and family. On the contrary, legalizing homosexual adoption will be conflicting to the religious roles and values, instilling bad morals to the children and might result in the shutdown of foster care system and orphanage.

Works Cited

Andrea, Stone. “USATODAY.Com - Both Sides On Gay Adoption Cite Concern For Children”. Usatoday30.Usatoday.Com, 2006, http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/nation/2006-02-20-gay-adoption-foster_x.htm.

April, Martin, Ph.D. “Issues For Lesbian- And Gay-Parented Families”. Parenthood.Library.Wisc.Edu, http://parenthood.library.wisc.edu/Martin/Martin.html.

Arthur, Dobrin D.S.W. “Barriers To Adoption For Same-Sex Couples”. Psychology Today, 2016, https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/am-i-right/201602/barriers-adoption-same-sex-couples.

Baiocco, Roberto et al. “Lesbian Mother Families And Gay Father Families In Italy: Family Functioning, Dyadic Satisfaction, And Child Well-Being”. Sexuality Research And Social Policy, vol 12, no. 3, 2015, pp. 202-212. Springer Nature, doi:10.1007/s13178-015-0185-x.

Ball M, Carlos A. The Right To Be Parents: LGBT Families And The Transformation Of Parenthood. 1st ed., New York University Press, 2012,

Cody, Patricia A. et al. “Youth Perspectives On Being Adopted From Foster Care By Lesbian And Gay Parents: Implications For Families And Adoption Professionals”. Adoption Quarterly, 2016, pp. 1-21. Informa UK Limited, doi:10.1080/10926755.2016.1200702.

Glenn, Gary. “Gays And Lesbians Should Not Be Allowed To Adopt”. 2008, http://science.jburroughs.org/mbahe/BioEthics/Articles/gay.adoption.con.pdf.

Golombok, Susan et al. “Adoptive Gay Father Families: Parent-Child Relationships And Children’s Psychological Adjustment”. Child Development, vol 85, no. 2, 2013, pp. 456-468. Wiley-Blackwell, doi:10.1111/cdev.12155.

Perrin, E. C., and B. S. Siegel. “Promoting The Well-Being Of Children Whose Parents Are Gay Or Lesbian”. PEDIATRICS, vol 131, no. 4, 2013, pp. e1374-e1383. American Academy Of Pediatrics (AAP), doi:10.1542/peds.2013-0377.

Sabrina., Tavernise. “Adoptions Rise By Same-Sex Couples, Despite Legal Barriers.”. The New York Times., 2013,