I'm going to make a large assumption at the fact that those who are against gay couples adopting children just aren't well-informed about the "issue", or at least that's what I'm hoping is the case. Researching this debate opened my eyes to even more facts that I never knew about the suggested "statistics" that come from those who are against these adoptions. The one I hear over and over again is the whole idea that children raised in homosexual households are more likely to identify as homosexual or get involved in homosexual behavior than children raised in single-parent households. All available evidence actually shows that the sexual orientation of parents has no impact on the sexual orientation of their children and that children of lesbian and gay parents are no more likely than any other child to grow up to be gay.
A completely ignorant idea that comes up quite often is the idea that children whom are raised in homosexual households will be less successful than children that are raised in a heterosexual household. In fact, not a single study has found that children of lesbian or gay parents to be disadvantaged because of their parents' sexual orientation.
I came across this idea on a website, "Lesbians and gay men are more likely to molest children." I think that it is amazing that when I come across a completely ridiculous and absurd "fact", about 85% of the time there are no supporting facts or statistics that accompany it. Isn't that funny? I think it is! There is absolutely no connection between homosexuality and pedophilia. Facts that this site lists after include: "Ninety percent of child abuse is committed by heterosexual men. In one study of 269 cases of child sexual abuse, only two offenders were gay or lesbian. Of the cases studied involving molestation of a boy by a man, 74 percent of the men were or had been in a heterosexual relationship with the boy's mother or another female relative. The study concluded that "a child's risk of being molested by his or her relative's heterosexual partner is over 100 times greater than by someone who might be identifiable as being homosexual, lesbian, or bisexual."
I am just amazed at how people can simply want to deny qualified, loving parents the option to adopt a child who would otherwise be moving from foster home to foster home or possibly even on the streets. Heaven forbid we give a child a good home just because the parents are of the same sex. You would think that people would rather have a child in a home that has two parents, whether it be of the same sex or not, than be in a single-parent household. I mean after all, one of the main arguments against gay couples adopting is that children need a mother and a father figure to grow to become a successful part of society. We have never denied anyone from getting a divorce, which can quite often lead to single-parent households, have we? Didn't think so.
Couldnt agree more!
ReplyDeleteAs I was reading my classmate Alicia Jasenovec's blog Why deny the right to adopt?, I found myself agreeing with every argument that she made for allowing gay couples to adopt children. Alicia started the blog with a fact about how many children there are waiting to be adopted, which I found very astonishing and appropriate to be included for support of her argument. Alicia gave several examples of polls and reports that coincide with her argument that there is no factual evidence in support of the idea that a child is "unsafe" or at "risk" in a homosexual household more than a heterosexual household. I believe this makes her argument more substantial and harder to disagree with. The blog is well written, the language is clear, and Alicia gives facts to support her argument.
I completely agree with Alicia, I think that denying gay couples adoption rights is absurd. People who would rather see children remain homeless and in foster care are just plain cruel. A child growing up in a foster environment is more likely to develop problematic behavior in the future. Just because the parents of a child are homosexual, does not necessarily mean that the child will become homosexual. There are plenty of children/adults that are homosexual now who grew/grow up in a heterosexual environment. Even if they did become homosexual, it doesn't matter. This is a modern world that continually evolves and our leaders have no right to discriminate or tell people who they can legally be attracted to. I also agree with one of Alicia's last statements, if children need a mother and father figure to succeed, why not take away divorce rights? Divorce is all around us and I am sure it causes more harm to children than a successful homosexual household would. Great blog Alicia!
i really dig your stuff. i'm new to the blog scene. some friends suckered me into it, but when i come across blogs like yours, i don't feel like i'm wasting my time. haha. i'd like to talk more and maybe you could give me some pointers as to how i can improve my blog and things like that. i'm basically computer retarded. i could use the help. haha. i'm at: exmypa.blogspot.com . follow me so we can talk more. thanks for your time.
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