Children And Gay Marriage

     A common argument against allowing gay marriage is that it is harmful to children to be raised in such marriages. There is no organization in the country more dedicated to the health and care of children than the American Academy of Pediatrics and in April 2013, the Academy issued its latest policy statement on the well-being of children whose parents are gay or lesbian.

     The American Academy of Pediatrics policy states that research clearly shows that children who are raised by same-sex parents do as well as children of heterosexual parents in terms of emotional stability, social development and school performance. As it has for the last 10 years, the Academy supported the policy that same-gender couples should have the same legal rights to marriage as couples who are mixed-gender. This view is shared by the American Academy of Family Physicians, The American College of Nursing, The American Psychiatric Association and the American Bar Association.

     The policy also supports adoption by same-sex couples as well as adoption by single gay parents. It states that the civil unions and other non-marriage options that states offer to gay couples fall short in providing the legal rights, protections and benefits to children that civil marriage gives.

     The Academy states it believes the federal Defense Of Marriage Act (DOMA) is unconstitutional. The DOMA denies equal access to housing and food stamp benefits, military service benefits and Social Security disability benefits to same-sex couples. Under the law, same-sex couples cannot file joint income tax returns and cannot take advantage of the child and dependent care tax credits that other married couples can claim. Dr. Benjamin Siegel, a professor at Boston University and co-author of the Academy statement said: ”families need to be supported to raise their kids, and families ought to be treated equally”.

     A loving, supportive family and financial security are the things that create emotionally stable, responsible children. The parent’s sexual preference has nothing to do with it.  People who argue against gay marriage need to use something other than children’s welfare to support their stance.