Foster children are kept out of loving homes
BY: JESS GAFKOWITZ
Since 2010, I’ve been eagerly tracking the status of the Every Child Deserves a Family Act, a bill that if passed into law, would benefit the lives of thousands of people.
Over 120,000 foster children in the U.S. are waiting to be adopted. However, some folks are being kept from fulfilling their dream of adopting a child based on their marital status because of discriminatory state adoption laws or individual screening and placement policies carried out by agencies throughout the country. Unmarried different-sex and same-sex couples are often left out, even though many would be great parents. They just need to be given that chance! Every potential parent should be screened carefully, just like any other. Only the best interests of each child should determine who is right for them.
The ECDFA is a conscious effort to prohibit further discrimination in adoption or foster care placement on the basis of marital status, as well as the sexual orientation or gender identity of prospective adoptive or foster parents.
YOU can help ensure states and agencies treat all children and families equally by taking this simple action today:
Tell Congress all foster children need homes now!
October 3rd, 2011 at 6:48 pm
I was a single, bisexual foster parent for three years. One of my foster daughters specifically requested a home with no men in it. My foster son specifically requested a queer foster home. If anyone wants to interview my foster daughter, she’s now 26 and would have plenty to say about this issue!
October 4th, 2011 at 8:41 am
Ooooo, this is one of the issues that really sets me off. My “husband” and I are in the process of adopting. We have been together for over 9 years. We are unable to get legally married because I have a nueromuscular disease and need daily living assistance. I work full time but take part in a buy-in Medicaid program and they pay for my personal care attendants. IF we were to get legally married, they would combine our incomes making me ineligble for my personal care givers, which without I can’t live. So, we had a commitment ceremony, we wear rings, we refer to each other as “husband” and “wife”. But during this process, it has never been more of an issue, not being married. I have had dozens of agencies turn us away before knowing anything about us, because we are not legally married. I even had one send me a looooooooooooong email with all the reasons why birthmothers DO NOT pick unmarried i.e single people. GRRRRRR…. I could go on and on and on…