Comments on: ‘We Are Dad’ - Discrimination Against Gay & Lesbian Foster Parents

By: MovieBoy

MovieBoy — Fri, 26 Aug 2005 07:07:14 +0000

I am so glad this film is sparking conversation. For those of you who do not have Showtime, there is a web site for the film: It is www.tavrohfilms.com and the DVD is now available.

By: cluttergirl

cluttergirl — Mon, 01 Aug 2005 23:55:17 +0000

B and Helen, I really don’t think you can adopt a child and then give it over like a car you’ve bought to anyone you want. Adoption does not work like that, nor parenting in general. I agree that this is a total travesty. I don’t see how this is in anyway in the best interests of the child. And yes, why are children who need MORE care deemed ok for lesbians, gays and singles to care for, rather than the stereotypical straight couple? Seems that if lesbians and gays are so bad at parenting they should get the children that have no special needs at all. No. It is a situation of placing the “least desirable” children with the “least desirable” parents. The hypocrisy is galling.

By: Helen

Helen — Mon, 01 Aug 2005 09:45:30 +0000

I’m with B. I think some cooperative couple should adopt the boy and let him stay with his dads.

By: manxome

manxome — Mon, 01 Aug 2005 06:06:02 +0000

Because he no longer tests positive for HIV and is under the age of 14, Bert is deemed “adoptable.”

Since Bert was born in 1991, he would turn 14 this year. I’m curious how this changes the argument. If he is no longer “adoptable” at 14, what is his status under Florida law? I didn’t come across anything addressing this when I read. Just curious if anyone knows how this changes things.

They certainly are an extraordinary family. I wish I had Showtime.

By: hf

hf — Mon, 01 Aug 2005 03:58:48 +0000

B, if the bureaucrats would allow that, they probably wouldn’t have made an issue of this in the first place.

By: B

Sun, 31 Jul 2005 23:10:44 +0000

Couldn’t someone make a mercy-adoption of the boy and then give full custody to his dads?

By: resipsa

resipsa — Sun, 31 Jul 2005 23:08:38 +0000

This is an important story to debunk the myth that somehow gays and lesbians are favored in adoption and foster parents, a myth perpetuated by folks like Maggie Gallagher and Eve Tushnet. Gallagher is so convinced of it she pumped out a study by Catholic University “pro-family” group to institute some sort of married parents preference, despite a single shred of evidence that married paretns aren’t already preferred.

By: resipsa

resipsa — Sun, 31 Jul 2005 22:55:30 +0000

By: Kim (basement variety!)

Kim (basement variety!) — Sun, 31 Jul 2005 22:47:40 +0000

True that. It seems as if they have some sort of ‘blue book’ value placed on the children with regards to being adoptive.

I wonder if they also have qualifiers that include race, sex and age of the children.

By: Nick Kiddle

Nick Kiddle — Sun, 31 Jul 2005 22:12:58 +0000

Quite apart from the vileness of a gay adoption ban (and I thought we were mediaeval for only letting one half of a gay couple adopt), what the hell is with classifying an HIV-positive kid as not “adoptable”? I don’t imagine all such kids are lucky enough to end up in the long-term care of two loving parents…