BY CANDY PARKER

A new study conducted by the University of Melbourne in Australia indicates that children raised in same-sex parent households were happier and healthier as compared to the general population.

Described as the largest study of its type in the world, the report — Parent-reported measures of child health and wellbeing in same-sex parent families: a cross-sectional survey — assessed 315 same-sex parents and 500 children in regard to their physical health and social wellbeing. Researchers found that children raised by same-sex parents scored 6 percent higher than the general population in the areas of general health and family cohesion. Researchers noted that these results “held up when controlling for a number sociodemographic factors such as parent education and household income.”

Lead researcher Dr. Simon Crouch cited parental harmony in same-sex families as contributing to the children’s wellbeing. “It appears that same-sex parent families get along well and this has a positive impact on health. We know that same-sex attracted parents are more likely to share child care and work responsibilities more equitably than heterosexual parent families, based more on skills rather than gender roles. This appears to be contributing to a more harmonious household and having a positive impact on child health.”

Predictably, detractors of the study have discounted the findings. Roslyn Phillips, research officer for Family Voice Australia said, “You’ve got to look beyond studies like these to what happens when the child reaches adulthood, and that’s the only time with independent assessment you can really say what’s gone on with the parenting and then ask them how they’re going in all sorts of ways; I think that would be a more relevant study.”

Ms. Philips went on to question the objectivity of the research, as well. “Simon Crouch is raising two young children himself with his male homosexual partner, The results should be taken with caution.”

Dr. Crouch responded, indicating that his personal situation did not impact on the results of the study. “I acknowledge that I am from a same-sex-parent family, however I am one of a number of researchers on the paper who come from all sorts of different backgrounds. There’s a wide range of research across many different areas; first and foremost I’m a researcher, I’m a medical doctor and I’m a public health practitioner, and the objectivity I bring to this study doesn’t depend on my own personal situation.”

The study corroborates prior research which has demonstrated a general wellbeing amongst children of same-sex parents and Dr. Crouch also suggested the findings may play a role in Australia’s marriage debate.

“Australian politicians and others still object to marriage equality and same-sex adoption based on arguments that children need to be raised by a married biological mother and biological father to do well. This study shows that children can thrive in a range of family contexts and the ways that these families are constructed can bring their own particular benefits to child health and wellbeing,” offered Crouch.

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Traditional family. Traditional marriage. We hear these terms hurled in protest against us. Traditional is a misnomer. It’s used in place of heterosexual. There is no traditional, heterosexual or same-sex, marriage or family. Like people, all families and the ways in which we get married are diverse and unique. The modern day family and marriage reflects that diversity.

Shay and Yolanda Franco-Clausen are one example of modern day love. Four months after same-sex marriage became legal in California they got married, surrounded by their three kids, best friends and family.

Shay and Yolanda are great examples of what love looks like. They founded PlayNice Productions in 2013, a nonprofit that creates inclusive LGBTQ events open to the whole community.

Under the umbrella of PlayNice, they also developed the P.L.A.Y.C.E. Bay Area Community program and the Nice Play Youth Basketball program. P.L.A.Y.C.E. stands for People Living As Your Community Examples. It’s an outreach program that has already implemented adopt a family, beach and neighborhood clean ups and #TheGivingProject. Nice Play Youth Basketball is a six week little to no cost basketball camp for kids to teach leadership skills, provide a safe space and bring kids together to create and foster friendships.

Shay and Yolanda are active community members and one example of what a loving family looks like. We got to chat with Shay about her wedding and the importance that family and community play in her life.

How did you feel when you heard same-sex marriage became legal in California? How did the ban on same-sex marriage impact you?

My older brother called me at 6am, June 26, he said, and I quote, “Hey sis, you and that sexy lady of yours can get married now!” It meant so much to us because if anything would happen to one of us, like so many other same-sex couples, we have no legal rights to all we have worked hard to create together. We refused to get married in other states that it was illegal in, so when Prop 8 was taken down, we just cried and cried. Finally, I can marry the woman of my dreams. The day we found out that same-sex marriage had been legalized we felt that we were one step closer to being an actual part of the larger community, the everyone community.

How did it feel to have your kids be part of your bridal party and to have them not only be an integral part in your wedding, but to be able to witness and experience your wedding day with you?

This day was long awaited for them. They knew our fight, as they face their own discrimination for having same-sex parents. The whole day they cried with lots of emotions, as they are advocates for equality, just like their moms. The feelings that were behind our wedding and having our kids witnessing it, as parents, is hard to describe. We are the luckiest parents because our kids can see the relationship that we have without any bias.

You were going to get married on the old Bay Bridge before it got destroyed. What significance did that have for you?

Unfortunately, the vandalism that happened three days before our wedding stopped that from happening. However, the designer of the bridge and his wife surprised us with a tugboat decorated with trees, rose petals and crew. So we got married under it with San Francisco in our background. We did have lots of trips on the bridge, which we will hold close to us. It’s a part of our history and of our wedding. It was significant because we were able to get married in a place that others won’t be able to replicate. It was amazing to know that our wedding will always carry a story.

What tips do you have for other same-sex couples planning their wedding?

Find the venue first. Use all your resources, meaning friends and connections. You never know who may have a yacht, mansion or space you can get for as little as nothing. Check Facebook. One tip that I would share with same-sex couples is that it is the most beautiful day so make sure you are surrounded by people who love you because you will want to look back on the day you married your wife or husband.

Family and community are hugely important to you both. What about family and fostering community and inclusivity impassions you and how does that show through in your work with PlayNice Productions?

I think for me, being a child at-risk and not having any opportunities or role models in my family. Being one in the community makes me feel like I am there for many teens who were lost like I was. We are creating spaces that people can feel welcome and at home at. This is why we created PlayNice Productions because this is our opportunity to teach people how to play nice. We create a “safe social space,” the words my wife uses, so those who feel trapped into exclusivity can find a place to be among people, no matter their gender, color or social class.

Tell me more about the concept behind People Living As Your Community Examples and what you hope to achieve with PlayNice Productions?

It is a program that takes in people from diverse backgrounds and different community members and brings them together to make a positive impact. The impact will not only help people in need, but it will also help people see and accept the diverse people that are offering community services.

Most recently, we adopted families for Christmas. People came together and donated many different resources and gifts to go to the diverse families who were elected by the community. We believe that we can help people find new ways to contribute to their communities and help it diversify and strengthen. We want to create leaders of tomorrow and reach out to at-risk teens and young adults that need to find a community effort to affiliate themselves with, at the same time teaching those leaders acceptance and the power of positivity.

You were recently chosen to be YMCA’s family for their first LGBTQ National Marketing Campaign. How does that feel? What impact do you think your family and this campaign will make?

YMCA is our local family gym. It is our recreation league, and our family’s little connection to other families. We volunteer as coaches. We teach Zumba, teach PE at some of their elementary schools and are really proactive to helping. I think that our family wasn’t accepted by the gym goers immediately, but because parents, kids, members and staff have seen all the work that we do there everyone had to recognize that we may not be seen as a traditional family, but we are a family who cares. We were mentioned by one of the staff members as a candidate that they should consider, and we ultimately became their family of choice.

The impact is something that is the most rewarding part. Our family is a multi-racial, multi-cultural, wide-age range family that will be seen on national ads. Our family of two moms raising three bi-racial kids in the Silicon Valley is still able to get up every day, handle all the traditional tasks of any family, raise wonderful, intelligent kids, start a nonprofit, donate additional time to other nonprofits and still be successful as a family that is never seen as successful or ever been represented. Our kids and kids that are like ours with two same-sex parents will be able to look at a commercial or a billboard and possibly see our faces, our family and know that they are not alone, and that they are not weird. [We could] possibly inspire others, and [help them] know that they can even go beyond their day-to-day and make a positive change as a non-traditional family.

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According to a new study, foster-care children adopted by gay and lesbian parents do just as well as those adopted by heterosexual parents.

Researchers looked at 82 high-risk children, aged four months to eight years old, adopted from foster care in Los Angeles County. 60 of them were placed with heterosexual parents, 15 with gay male parents and seven with lesbian parents.

Read more at TheSeattleLesbian.com

The Seattle Lesbian online magazine reaches more than 188,000 readers per week globally.

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Further clarifying Mitt Romney’s insensitivity to LGBT people and their families, the Boston Globe reports that as governor of Massachusetts, Romney prevented the Department of Health from issuing accurate birth certificates for the children of married same-sex couples. After marriage equality was ruled into law by the Massachusetts Supreme Court in late 2003, the Registry of Vital Records and Statistics insisted that birth certificate forms needed to be revised from the “father”/”mother” dichotomy to include gay and lesbian parent — but Romney objected.

Instead, the GOP presidential frontrunner forced his top legal staff to individually review every same-sex birth, and only after winning their approval could hospital officials and town clerks manually cross out “father” on the forms for lesbian couples. Gay males couples were actually required to seek a court order to secure their parenthood. As a result of these arbitrary policies, the 10-day deadlines for issuing birth certificates were often not met for many children.

Read more at ThinkProgress.org

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Dr. Alan Goldbloom

BY ZACK FORD
Think Progress

Minnesota faces a constitutional amendment next month banning same-sex marriage, but the president and CEO of Children’s Hospitals and Clinics of Minnesota, Dr. Alan Goldbloom, explained in an op-ed this week that the amendment would harm children.

“During my four decades of involvement in children’s health care, I have seen my share of issues that harm children. However, from this time I can’t cite a single case in which the presence of loving, committed parents, heterosexual or homosexual, has negatively affected a child. In fact, all the evidence points to the opposite. Children are far more likely to thrive when they are in a stable family with loving parents, or in many cases, a loving single parent …”

Read more at ThinkProgress.org

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Seven years ago, my nephew Mike was approached by a lesbian couple, good friends of his, about helping them conceive a child that he might also help them raise. At first, he wasn’t sure, but he had always wanted to be a father, and this looked to be his big chance to fulfill his dream.

Fast forward seven years, and Mike, Jackie and Ann are the happy parents of two adorable blond-haired, blue-eyed daughters, Freya and Liza.

Read more at Care2.com

Care2 is the largest online community of people passionate about making a difference.

The post The 3 (or more) parent family – What do you think? first appeared on Lesbian.com.

Considerable research has shown that children of same-sex parents fare just as well as children with heterosexual parents. However, two papers published in Elsevier’s “Social Science Research”—one a comprehensive new study and one a review of existing studies—suggest insufficient data exist from which to draw any definitive conclusions.

The review by Dr. Loren Marks from Louisiana State University finds that much of the science that forms the basis for the highly regarded 2005 official brief on same-sex parenting by the American Psychological Association (APA) does not stand up to scrutiny. The new study by University of Texas sociologist Mark Regnerus provides evidence that a number of differences in social and emotional well-being exist between young adults raised by women who have had a lesbian relationship and those who have grown up in a nuclear family.

Dr. Marks reviewed studies published between 1980 and 2005 cited by the 2005 official APA brief which asserted that: “Not a single study has found children of lesbian or gay parents to be disadvantaged in any significant respect relative to children of heterosexual parents.”

“The jury is still out on whether being raised by same-sex parents disadvantages children,”, explains Marks. “However, the available data on which the APA draws its conclusions, derived primarily from small convenience samples, are insufficient to support a strong generalized claim either way.”

Meanwhile, Regnerus used data from the New Family Structures Study, a large nationally representative sample of approximately 3,000 young adults aged 18 to 39, to compare how children raised in eight different family structures fared on 40 social, emotional and relationship outcomes.

According to his findings, children of mothers who have had same-sex relationships were significantly different as young adults on 25 or the 40 outcome measures, compared with those who spent their entire childhood with both their married, biological parents.

Regnerus’ analysis determined that children do not “need a married mother and father to turn out well as adults, but neither does there appear to be a gay and lesbian exception to the general pattern that “children appear most apt to succeed well as adults when they spend their entire childhood with their married mother and father.”

In a response intended to tease out some of the study’s implications on the gay marriage debate, Will Saletan asserts that what the study actually demonstrates is that kids from broken homes headed by gay people develop the same problems as kids from broken homes headed by straight people. Saleten contends that the study highlights the need for fewer broken homes among gays and straights and offers that gay parents owe their kids the same stability as straight parents, a compelling argument for marriage equality.

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