A new report details the inequalities children of LGBT parents face under state laws—laws that govern much related to family life, including fostering, adoption, donor insemination, surrogacy, parentage orders, custody, and inheritance.
Much of the report will be old news to many of us who have dealt with such inequalities in our own lives. We know that in many states, children with LGBT parents do not have legal ties to both parents. This has led in tragic cases to parents’ inability to access or pay for medical services for their children and the severing of ties between child(ren) and one of their parents if the parents break up. It can also mean children are denied inheritance, disability or survivor’s benefits, or the ability to sue for wrongful death.
Still, the personal stories of families impacted by unfair state laws help renew my outrage. The report also hopes to direct some of our outrage into action. It contains specific recommendations for state-level policymakers, samples of existing legislative models designed to support lawmakers who are crafting legislation, and a state-by-state summary of the status of current laws and suggests areas for improvement.
The new report is part of a series drawn from the All Children Matter project, which I first wrote about last October. This latest report was produced by the Movement Advancement Project, the Family Equality Council, and the Center for American Progress, in partnership with the Evan B. Donaldson Adoption Institute and the Equality Federation.