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Nick Victor
Ms. Conlon
Writing Workshop
December 13, 2011
Gay Adoption in America
There are currently around 500,000 children in foster care, and every year only about
20,000 qualified parents adopt from these half a million kids, according to some studies.
Different types of people, including gay parents are not allowed to adopt children. People say
gay couples are unstable and not natural to true marriage. They say the parents’ sexuality will
affect their children in a negative way. They say two parents of the same sex cannot raise a child
correctly. Adoption rights should not be based on a parent’s sexuality, but more on his or her
ability to raise a child with love and care; therefore, gay adoption should be legal nationally.
Many people against same sex adoption argue that same sex couples are unstable and
unreliable. However, same sex parents are usually more stable and trustworthy than the average
mother and father. According to the article “Pros and Cons of Gay Adoption”, same-sex
relationships are more secure than heterosexual marriages, which gives the child a more
established home emotionally. Also, it takes about 7 to 8 years to adopt a child. The parents
going through this long and strenuous process proves their dedication and commitment in their
parenting. Furthermore, parents should not be judged upon their sexuality, but instead on their
dedication and love for their kid. The adoption process itself shows that gay parents are very
qualified to be raising a child.
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Others say that kids need both gender parental roles in their lives. Although this is true,
there are ways to solve this problem. As Ava McKinnon pointed out, family members of the gay
parents can help with the opposing gender role. If a child is raised by two gay men, they could
have their mom or sister step in and help with that side of the parenting. Many children
nowadays are successfully raised by a single parent with a relative helping out. In addition, if one
were to take away adoption by gay couples for lack of both gender roles, then they would also
have to take away from single parents raising a child. A lack of a certain gender role model
should not prohibit gay couples from adopting because relatives can help.
Protesters against gay adoption have also argued that it is natural to have a man and
woman as parents and that gay parents will be confused with parental gender roles. On the
contrary, many of the tasks of parenting do not require a certain gender. Lillian Downey pointed
out that gay parents have the same parental responsibilities as straight parents. All parents have
to take their kids to school, do their laundry, and play with them outside. Gay parents have just
as many responsibilities as straight parents, and the gender of the parents does not determine if
they can accomplish these tasks. Also, the ideas and definition of marriage is changing and
evolving. Nowadays, marriage is not only between a man and a woman, but can also be a man
and man or woman and woman. The gender roles within marriage and parenting are evolving as
well.
With so many children living without parents right now, we should be looking for parents
who can adopt, not criticizing against people trying to adopt. If the parents are responsible,
dedicated, and capable, they should be able to adopt. Same sex parents can have these traits just
as heterosexual couples can. We should not be looking upon the negatives of same sex parents,
but should look towards the positives. Joyce Maguire Pavao once said, “Adoption is not about
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finding children for families, it's about finding families for children.” With so many loving and
caring gay couples ready to adopt, why are we finding the negatives in their sexuality, instead of
looking at if they are willing and able to raise a child?
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Works Cited
Downey, Lillian. "Gay Adoption Advantages For Children.” LIVESTRONG.COM - Lose Weight
& Get Fit with Diet, Nutrition & Fitness Tools. 4 May 2011. 30 Nov. 2011. <WEB.>
McKinnon, Ava. "The Pros and Cons of Gay Adoption." Associated Content from Yahoo! Associatedcontent.com. 28 Mar. 2009. 30 Nov. 2011. <WEB.>
"Pros and Cons of Gay Adoption." The Week UK | British & Foreign News, Opinion, Sport,
People & Business. 25 Oct. 2008. 30 Nov. 2011. <WEB.>