scholarly journals Homosexuality, Religion, and the Family: The Effects of Religion on Americans’ Appraisals of the Parenting Abilities of Same-Sex Couples

2017 ◽  
Vol 65 (1) ◽  
pp. 42-65 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrew L. Whitehead
Keyword(s):  
Same Sex ◽  
Author(s):  
Claire Fenton-Glynn

This chapter examines the interpretation of ‘family life’ under Article 8 and the way that this has evolved throughout the Court’s history. It contrasts the approach of the Court to ‘family life’ between children and mothers, with ‘family life’ between fathers and children, noting the focus of the Court on function over form. It then turns to the establishment of parenthood, both in terms of maternity and paternity, as well as the right of the child to establish information concerning their origins. Finally, the chapter examines the changing face of the family, considering new family forms, including same-sex couples and transgender parents, as well as new methods of reproduction, such as artificial reproductive techniques and surrogacy.


2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrew L Whitehead

While a growing body of research focuses on Americans’ attitudes toward same-sex couples as parents, very few include measures of religion and those that do fail to capture its multidimensional nature. Furthermore, many past studies rely on convenience samples of college students, or samples gathered outside the United States. Multivariate analyses of the 2012 General Social Survey – a nationally representative sample of adults in the United States – reveal that a slim majority of Americans still do not believe same-sex couples can parent as well as male-female couples and the religious beliefs, behaviors, and affiliations of Americans are significantly and at times differentially associated with appraisals of same-sex couples’ parenting abilities. It appears that while religion is generally associated with more negative appraisals of the parenting abilities of same-sex couples, it is not uniformly so. Americans’ immediate religious and cultural context can shape their appraisals of homosexuality in diverse ways.


2021 ◽  
Vol 16 ◽  
pp. e202109
Author(s):  
Luísa Cardoso Guedes de Souza ◽  
Paula Miranda-Ribeiro

This article examines same-sex couples as a sign of the Second Demographic Transition, investigating how gay and lesbian couples living together in Brasília build their family, whether they intend to have children, and what challenges they face. We conducted semi-structured interviews online to investigate the family formation process and parenting intentions of 42 couples living together in Brasília in 2019, 20 lesbian and 22 gay couples. The organizing themes in the interviews were marriage, children, work, and stigma. This study advances existing scholarship on families by articulating points of connection between the legal institution of same-sex marriage in Brazil, changing social norms regarding family life, and parental gender expectations as signs of the Second Demographic Transition. Studying same-sex couples contribute to a more complex understanding of the family, the gendered division of labor, and the dimension of fertility and parenting intentions.


Revista CS ◽  
2015 ◽  
pp. 91-109
Author(s):  
Isabel Cristina Jaramillo Sierra ◽  
Helena Alviar

The concept of “family” plays an important role in the way national legal regimes distribute both power and resources. However, the idea of what a family is or should be is not univocal for all branches of law. In this paper we wish to contribute to feminist thinking about the law and to legal theory in general, by showing the contradictions and gaps in law’s incorporation of the legal concept of the family and their distributive impact. We use the notion of conceptual fragmentation to refer to the irregular manner in which family as a legal concept lands into the realms of diverse fields of law at different moments in time and with different emphasis. We argue that conceptual fragmentation makes connections through time and subject matter invisible, and therefore makes it harder to have a critique of the role of the family, treated as a legal concept, in the oppression of women. We establish that conceptual fragmentation is not irrational or incoherent but rather patterned in ways that correspond to the losses of women in contemporary societies. We use the case of colombian law to illustrate the stakes involved in defining the family and the operations that we call fragmentation. In particular, we explain how family law exceptionalism was produced, the importance of the legal concept of the family within family law and its ambivalence as to the proper definition, and the evolution of the concept of family within social policy. We argue that even if the stakes of the family seem to be all for same sex couples, in so far as “family” is still about reproduction and distribution, we should be vigilant about how women fare in the conceptual turns that seek to bring us closer to the natural family.


2021 ◽  
Vol 27 (3) ◽  
pp. 563-590
Author(s):  
Sonja Patrčević ◽  
Maja Ernečić

DEVELOPMENT OF CHILDREN IN SAME-SEX FAMILIES – FACTS, PREJUDICES AND THE ROLE OF SOCIETY Changes in the family structure which have been present in recent decades generated new forms of families, among which are same-sex families. These changes are mainly not accompanied by the same speed of changes in society through a change of the system of values, public perceptions and policies. Many same-sex couples raise children who were born in previous heterosexual relationships, realise parenthood through different reproduction techniques, and in some societies, which are more modern and mature than ours and which are pro-European and western oriented, adoption of children by same-sex couples was already legitimized a long time ago. A series of research studies connected to same-sex families and parenthood was conducted to date. The results of most scientific studies have shown that there are no significant changes between children who grow up in heterosexual unions and those who grow up in same-sex unions related to their mental and physical well-being, social competencies, behavioural adjustment, gender identity and role, sexual orientation, social relations and academic achievement. It seems that family processes, quality of parenthood and quality of the parent-child relationship influence the developmental outcomes far more than the family structure does. The influence of stigmatization seems to be controversial as the results are contradictory. The influence of stigmatization is negatively connected to mental health and quality of life of same-sex couples. In spite of that, their children develop into healthy persons in the homophobic society they grow up in. Nevertheless, society burdened by stereotypes and prejudice represents a certain social risk for same-sex families. Opposing scientific research which shows very few noticeable differences between the children of same-sex and heterosexual couples to social beliefs that are not based on scientific facts is important for the social survival of these different families. Scientific literature should be the only relevant factor in designing policies that position same-sex families within a wider social context. It is precisely due to this that this paper provides an overview of scientific research studies that are focused on the potential influences of same-sex unions on the children’s growing up,with an emphasis on the sexual and psychosocial development of the children. The presented results should form a basis for all discussions about the influence of same-sex parenthood on children and only they are relevant for policy-making based on scientific facts.


2017 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Adilson Lucio da Silva Filho

<p dir="ltr"><span>Resumo</span></p><span><span><br /></span></span><p dir="ltr"><span>O presente artigo tem como proposta, contribuir para a compreensão sobre a adoção por famílias homoafetivas através de um levantamento bibliográfico, revisando outras produções científicas e literaturas no campo da psicologia e direito. Propondo uma reflexão sobre as novas maneiras de se pensar em famílias, respeitando suas diversas possibilidades de configurações e suas interações com a sociedade, reconhecendo a importância de se preservar as estruturas e os estilos de vida de cada indivíduo. O estudo trata ainda os principais impactos da omissão legal quanto a existência das famílias homoparentais, principalmente nas garantias de seus direitos, onde nos deparamos com um Estado omisso e uma série de projetos, como o estatuto da família, por exemplo, que além de limitar a entidade familiar ao núcleo formado por um homem, uma mulher e seus filhos, coloca em risco a adoção por casais do mesmo sexo, passando por cima do STF (Supremo Tribunal Federal) que já reconhece a união estável homoafetiva, negando o direito da igualdade e dignidade a famílias, além de diminuir as chances de crianças e adolescentes em situação de abrigo, serem adotadas e possuírem uma família.</span></p><span><span><br /></span></span><p dir="ltr"><span>Palavras-chave:</span><span> famílias, famílias homoparentais, adoção, omissão, igualdade.</span></p><span><span><br /><br /></span></span><p dir="ltr"><span>Abstract</span></p><span><span><br /></span></span><p dir="ltr"><span>This article aims to contribute to the understanding of adoption by gay families, by reviewing through scientific publications and other literatures of psychology and rights. Proposing a reflection on the new ways of thinking about families, respecting their different possibilities of settings and their interactions with society, recognizing the importance of preserving individuals’ structures and lifestyle. This study also deals with the main impacts of the legal omission regarding the existence of  gay families, especially the guarantees of their rights, in which we stumble upon an omissive State and a number of projects, such as family statute, for instance, that besides limiting the family unit to a core formed by a man, a woman and their children, puts at risk the adoption by same-sex couples, going over the STF (Federal Supreme Court), what already recognizes the gay marriage, denying the right of equality and dignity to families, besides reducing the chances of children and adolescents in a shelter situation being adopted and having a family.</span></p><span id="docs-internal-guid-acc031a1-9621-deea-f9c4-4a49fee815a3"><br /><span>Keywords:</span><span> families, gay families, adoption, omission, </span><span>equality.</span></span>


Author(s):  
Torremans Paul

This chapter examines the power of the courts, both under their inherent jurisdiction and by statute, to make declarations as to marital status. For many years, the courts had statutory power to grant declarations of legitimacy, legitimation, and the validity of a marriage or whether the petitioner is a British subject. However, there was no power to declare the invalidity of a marriage by declaration: that had to be done in nullity proceedings. This chapter discusses the relevant provisions of Part III of the Family Law Act 1986 relating to declarations as to marital status; declarations of parentage, legitimacy, or legitimation; and declarations as to adoptions effected overseas. It also considers the relevant provisions of the Child Abduction and Custody Act 1985, Civil Partnership Act 2004, Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Act 2013, and Presumption of Death Act 2013.


2020 ◽  
pp. 247-272
Author(s):  
Sandra Patton-Imani

I revisit my argument that legalizing same-sex marriage both provided new rights and benefits to same-sex couples and further entrenched structures of inequality grounded in patriarchy, white supremacy, and economic stratification. I explore my research questions about how same-sex marriage was legalized and what that change may mean. The short answer is: It depends on whom you ask. Intersections of race, gender, tribal affiliation, socioeconomic status, and region show how same-sex marriage affects families in different social locations. I explore the meanings of the 2015 US Supreme Court decision legalizing same-sex marriage federally through three allegories. The family-making narratives of queer mothers articulate a critique of the contemporary US system of regulating and disseminating the rights of citizenship through legal marriage. I draw on these intersectional stories to envision coalitions and intersections between and among people and families whose lives are not recognized, valued, and protected in the United States.


2017 ◽  
Vol 6 (4) ◽  
pp. 258-273 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christopher A. Pepping ◽  
Anthony Lyons ◽  
W. Kim Halford ◽  
Timothy J. Cronin ◽  
John E. Pachankis

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