File photo The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) has issued a strong statement in favour of marriage equality and full adoption rights for all parents, regardless of sexual orientation, as the best way to guarantee benefits and security for children. “Children thrive in families that are stable and that provide permanent security, and the way we do that is through marriage,” says Benjamin Siegel, Chair of the group’s Committee on Psychosocial Aspects of Child and Family Health. “The AAP believes there should be equal opportunity for every couple to access the economic stability and federal supports provided to married couples to raise children.” In a previous policy statement published in 2002 and reaffirmed in 2010, the AAP supported second-parent adoption by partners of the same sex as a way to protect children’s right to maintain relationships with both parents, eligibility for health benefits and financial security. A new 2013 policy statement and accompanying technical report adds recommendations in support of civil marriage for same-gender couples; adoption by single parents, co-parents or second parents regardless of sexual orientation; and foster care placement regardless of sexual orientation. “The AAP has long been an advocate for all children, and this updated policy reflects a natural progression in the Academy’s support for families,” says Ellen Perrin co-author of the policy statement. “If a child has two loving and capable parents who choose to create a permanent bond, it’s in the best interest of their children that legal institutions allow them to do so.” AAP says a great deal of scientific research documents show there is no cause-and-effect relationship between parents’ sexual orientation and children’s well-being. It says in fact, many studies attest to the normal development of children of same-gender couples when the child is wanted, the parents have a commitment to shared parenting, and the parents have strong social and economic support. “Critical factors that affect the normal development and mental health of children are parental stress, economic and social stability, community resources, discrimination, and children’s exposure to toxic stressors at home or in their communities - not the sexual orientation of their parents,” AAP says.
Credit: GayNZ.com Daily News staff
First published: Saturday, 23rd March 2013 - 11:32am