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Barbara Cavalcanti
Professor Minor
ENG1010
Dec 1,2015

LGB Adoption
0n June 26, 2015 a life changing decision was madethe US Supreme Court ruling in favor for
the right of same-sex marriage in all 50 US states. Those who were considered taboo was no longer
feeling left out or mistreated. During this decision there was a very large conflict between the people
that believed in gay marriage and the people who didnt. Now these couples want to start a family, but
how? How will they bake a cake if they dont have all the ingredients per se? Well quite a hard topic
Id say. Not only does it affects the parents but also affects the family in general.

Who are we to judge?

Taking it personal I started to think about whom I want to be, what I want to be, and what I want to have
when I grew up. I want a great marriage with a wonderful man but not only that, I want a beautiful
family. Doesnt matter if the marriage is a same sex family or not, a family is a family and as long and
there is love and care between one another is all that matters. Just because that type of a family is
different than what we see on a day to day basis does not mean that they are any different.

Who will this affect?

As I have taken a psychology class I have learned and strongly believe that nature (DNA, things
that are biological) and nurture (environment) play very much off of each otherand most times the
nurture given actually can play a much bigger role in a childs life. In other words how someone is
raised basically makes them who they arethis is one of the reasons why some adults are
scared/worried about having kids. Talking about a child raised by same-sex couples bring lots of
questions in mind like how will they turn out? Will it really affect them as much as we think? After
much research I came across a journal by Abbie E. Goldberg, (How) Does It Make a Difference?
Perspectives of Adults with Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual Parents, which states:
[] some differences, in fact, do appear to exist, particularly in the area of sexuality and gender
development. For example, Tasker and Golombok (1997) found that youth with lesbian mothers
may be more likely to experience peer stigma related to their own sexuality (such as, teasing

Barbara Cavalcanti
Professor Minor
ENG1010
Dec 1,2015
about being gay themselves). They also reported that young adults with lesbian mothers were
more likely to consider a same-sex sexual relationship and to have had a same-sex relationship,
but they were no more likely to self-identify as nonheterosexual.
She then goes on to say that the children were more likely to proceed in less stereotypical gender
occupations for example girls where becoming doctors, lawyers, and engineers showing that it isnt
so bad for the kids after all. (Goldberg 2007)
Having millions of orphans in the US let alone around the world shocks me. President Obama
states: Our journey is not complete until our gay brothers and sisters are treated like anyone else under
the law. For if we are truly created equal, and then surely the love we commit to one another must be
equal as well. President Barack Obama, 2013 Inaugural Address
Which takes me right back to who are we to take the opportunity of a child from getting love,
attention, and care? In her Article, "To welcome a child: gay couples & adoption", Jo McGowan states
A child needs parents, parents want a child. What could be simpler? Loving a child should be simple
but strangely its not. Maybe all the love and the chance of having a life with parents that care about
them other than being in a prison (the orphanage) will over power the criticism that this child is going
to get. No matter what people go through at the end of the day they just want to love and be loved. Just
like people with disabilities have disadvantages but find ways around them to succeed so do gay
couples. Theyre willing to sacrifice not only their whole life, but also hard earned money, all of their
attention, and love to a new person who needs it the most.

Opposing view points

When I thought I actually knew what side I was for I ran across the article
Ten Arguments from Social Science against Same-Sex Marriage by Family
Research Council. Even though the article comes from a bias stand points they

Barbara Cavalcanti
Professor Minor
ENG1010
Dec 1,2015

make great arguments. Having people around you that love you and take care of
you makes life a little easier, but lets think a little deeper.
If same-sex civil marriage becomes common, most same-sex couples with children would be
lesbian couples. This would mean that we would have yet more children being raised apart from
fathers. Among other things, we know that fathers excel in reducing antisocial behavior and
delinquency in boys and sexual activity in girls.
What is fascinating is that fathers exercise a unique social and biological influence on their
children. For instance, a recent study of father absence on girls found that girls who grew up
apart from their biological father were much more likely to experience early puberty and a teen
pregnancy than girls who spent their entire childhood in an intact family. This study, along with
David Popenoe's work, suggests that a father's pheromones influence the biological development
of his daughter, that a strong marriage provides a model for girls of what to look for in a man,
and gives them the confidence to resist the sexual entreaties of their boyfriends. (Family
Research Council. Web.)
Mentioning how kids need a father, and need that special kind of care that only a man knows how to
give hits home. Knowing how great my dad is to me, and how sad I became when my parents got a
divorce because I couldnt see him often really shows me how much a child is going to miss not having
that love and relationship from a dad. Both relationships with each parent are very important in many
different aspects. Having a father figure is very important for quite a few reasons. As a son, thats our
role model, hero, and supporter. Also teaches us about manhood and the rules of being a man. On the
other hand, a mother also plays a very big rule. A mother is someone who is always there for you and
teaches about kindness and forgiveness. Even though its tough to believe, women bring men to a mind
of peace. Having a mother and a father to rely on helps you to be as well rounded of a person as you can
be. Among other things, mothers excel in providing children with emotional security and in reading
the physical and emotional cues of infants. Obviously, they also give their daughters unique counsel as
they confront the physical, emotional, and social challenges associated with puberty and adolescence.

Barbara Cavalcanti
Professor Minor
ENG1010
Dec 1,2015
This quote summarizes why a man and a woman play such a big part in a childs life, the mother being
emotionally stable for the child and the father teaching them right from wrong and learning a lesson.

Religion

The minute it comes to the subject of religion everything gets even harder. Understanding their
thoughts beliefs makes this subject a hard one to talk about. Does this mean that there is going to be
more atheists in the world? I mean if you were raised by LGB couples how could you believe in
something that doesnt except your parents? I wouldnt want to keep anyone from the experiences like
going to church, learning about God. Things that seem so simple and so usual to me and that I just loved
to go especially as a child. Its also sad to think that theyre even trying to change religion. In his article,
same-sex adoption plan an attack on faith, John Ferguson Victorian Editor Exclusive mentions how
Catholic workers at a key welfare agency would be forced into intolerable decisions if they opposed on
faith grounds adopting out children to gay parents and he reiterated his threat to shut down the Catholic
Care agency if the reforms passed the Victorian parliament. Personally I think thats taking it over
boardreligion is religion, you cant change it. Ferguson, also quotes You don't end discrimination by
creating new discrimination." Which stands out to me, because why would you discriminate something
if you know how hard it is to be discriminated.

Conclusion
With reading and learning about all the different views and effects it has on people my personal
thought is still one hundred percent on one side. I want everyone one to simply be happy. I know some
people are born this wayborn stuck in their bodies. So if thats the case then yes get married and
raise a happy child. There are too many great children needing love and many couples waiting to give
out love. Yes, it might be an imbalanced love and care just because different genders tend to give love
different ways, but its far better than no love. Love is beautiful lets not waste it.

Barbara Cavalcanti
Professor Minor
ENG1010
Dec 1,2015

Barbara Cavalcanti
Professor Minor
ENG1010
Dec 1,2015

Works Cited
"50 States with Legal Gay Marriage - Gay Marriage - ProCon.org." ProConorg Headlines.
N.p., n.d. Web. 01 Dec. 2015. <http://gaymarriage.procon.org/view.resource.php?
resourceID=004857>.
2007, Vol. 77, No. 4, 550 562, Abbie E. Goldberg. Comp. American Journal Of
Orthopsychiatry. 0002-9432/07/$12.00 DOI: 10.1037/0002-9432.77.4.550 (How)
Does It Make a Difference? Perspectives of Adults With Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual
Parents 77.4 (2007): n. pag. Web. 1 Dec. 2015.

<http://wordpress.clarku.edu/agoldberg/files/2012/03/GOLDBERG-AJO-2007.pdf>.
McGowan, Jo. "To welcome a child: gay couples & adoption." Commonweal 133.9 (2006): 8. Opposing
Viewpoints in Context. Web. 17 Nov. 2015.
"Same-sex adoption plan an 'attack on faith'." Australian [National, Australia] 20 Oct. 2015:
5. Opposing Viewpoints in Context. Web. 1 Dec. 2015.
"Family Research Council." Family Research Council. N.p., n.d. Web. 01 Dec. 2015.
<http://www.frc.org/issuebrief/ten-arguments-from-social-science-against-same-sex-marriage>.
Human Rights Canpain. N.p., n.d. Web. 10 Dec. 2015.