The LGBT community has long been a political hot potato to be tossed around and used by right wing homophobes to motivate their base, often claiming we were a threat to children to strike a chill in the hearts of backward thinking, uneducated conservatives.
Now the Democrats are doing the same to motivate their liberal base, but this time, we're being portrayed as the heroes. There are thousands of children all over this country in need of loving, permanent homes. Many states bar LGBT people from adopting or fostering those children. A new piece of legislation scheduled to be introduced Tuesday would ban federal funding to those states.
Something about this just doesn't sit right with me. With the current political divisions in Washington, this bill has no chance of making it to the president's desk and its sponsors are well aware of that fact. Is it ever okay to use children as political tools, even when our side may benefit in the long run, or is this just another example of a carefully calculated political strategy?
Via The Washington Blade:
Steve Majors, a spokesperson for Family Equality Council, confirmed in a statement to the Washington Blade that Rep. Pete Stark (D-Calif.) would on Tuesday introduce the bill, which is known as the Every Child Deserves a Family Act.
“The bill will drop on Tuesday in the House,” Majors said. “[Stark] wanted to do so in conjunction with National Foster Care Awareness Month.”
As it was previously written, the Every Child Deserves a Family Act would restrict federal funds for states if they have laws or practices that discriminate in adoption on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity. The 111th Congress was the first time the legislation had been introduced in the House.
Many states have recently undertaken action to restrict adoption by LGBT people. In Arizona, for example, Gov. Jan Brewer (R) signed legislation earlier this month that would give primary consideration for adoptive placement to opposite-sex married couples.
Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) has said she’d introduce companion legislation in the Senate. Majors said he received confirmation from her office that she’ll introduce her version of the bill in June. Gillibrand’s introduction would mark the first time the legislation has been introduced in the upper chamber of Congress.Related articles
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