The Family Pride Coalition has joined in Florida’s Coalition for Fair Adoption in an effort to overturn that state’s ban on adoption by lesbians and gay men. Our partners in this effort – including the National Center for Lesbian Rights (NCLR), Equality Florida, local parenting groups, and many others – are working hard to support the countless numbers of LGBT parents in Florida who are unable to secure a legal relationship with their child/children. It is clear that leaving so many Florida children without families, or without legally protected families, is not in the best interest of those children or the state.
Though the courts have, thus far, been unsuccessful with the Lofton case, we have seen huge advances in foster care and legal custody battles. Unfortunately, these positive rulings are sporadic, costly and don’t provide a comprehensive set of guidelines or protections for LGBT-headed families. We know it is critical that we repeal this ban, not only for the benefit of LGBT foster parents and would-be parents, but also for the thousands of children in Florida’s foster care system awaiting a permanent, stable and loving home.
We are looking to create a large and diverse coalition to repeal this discriminatory ban. It must include individuals and groups that will help us move Florida state legislators and the general public on this issue. We need churches, faith leaders and organizations, child welfare workers and groups, social scientists and researchers and legal scholars and organizations.
We are asking for your help today. We need LGBT parents, would-be parents and our straight allies and supportive organizations to join with us. We need families to share their stories with legislators and the media, attend town hall meetings and rallies, and to bring others into the Coalition. If you are a Floridian, or have contacts with individuals or organizations there, please contact us about joining the Coalition for Fair Adoption today by writing adoption@eqfl.org and copying (or CCing) that message to advocacy@familypride.org. You can also reach the Coalition’s Adoption Project Coordinator, Maria Bates, at (813) 870-3735, ext. 252.
As always, thank you for your ongoing support of all our families.