By Andrew Vorzimer ⋅ September 17, 2010 ⋅ A very disconcerting decision out of Valencia, Spain whose ramifications might be broader than originally reported: The twins were born legally to a surrogate mother in the United States The judge in First Instance Court 15 in Valencia has decided to annul the entry made in the Consular Civil Registry in Los Angeles, by a Spanish gay male married couple who were registered as the parents of twins. The...

Towleroad.com – September 22, 2010 – In November, 2008, Judge Cindy Lederman ruled that Florida’s ban on gay adoption is unconstitutional. The ruling allowed Frank Martin Gill to move forward with adopting two brothers, ages 4 and 8, who had been in Gill’s foster care since 2004. In the 53-page 2008 ruling, Lederman wrote: “It is clear that sexual orientation is not a predictor of a person’s ability to parent.”...

New York 1 – September 21, 2010 Unmarried partners, including gay couples, are now free to jointly adopt a child in New York State. Governor David Paterson signed a law making the change on Sunday. The law also puts “married couple” in the adoption statute, in place of what used to read “husband and wife.” Bill sponsors say that is meant to ensure children get insurance and other benefits from both adults, as well...

September 15, 2010 New York Times By SAM ROBERTS A majority of Americans now say their definition of family includes same-sex couples with children, as well as married gay and lesbian couples. At the same time, most Americans do not consider unmarried cohabiting couples, either heterosexual or same-sex, to be a family — unless they have children. The findings — part of a survey conducted this year as well as in 2003 and 2006 by Brian Powell, a...

Maris Beck September 12, 2010 – TheAge.com.au A JUDGE has allowed a gay man to adopt his foster child in what is believed to be a first for Victoria. The man, who cannot be identified for legal reasons, is in a gay relationship but has adopted the child by himself to comply with Victorian laws that make it illegal for gay couples to adopt a child together. The New South Wales Parliament passed a bill this week giving same-sex couples full adoption...

September 10, 2010 New York Times Magazine By LISA BELKIN Remember Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs? You learned about it in your intro psych course: a neat and tidy pyramid, with fulfillment of “physiological needs” at its base, then things like “safety,” “love,” “belonging” and “esteem” stacked on top, all capped by “self-actualization.” A group of academic psychologists have redesigned the nearly 70-year-old triangle. Most...

September 3, 2010 New York Times Magazine By MELANIE BRAVERMAN Jonah, our youngest, spent the day in the water again. At 5 he’s already an exquisite swimmer, diving for coins our Provincetown neighbors throw into the tide for him to fetch. Now we’re lying in his bed together waiting for him to fall asleep, and he’s thumping my stomach like it’s a beach ball. “Are you going to have more babies in your belly?” “You know I’ve never had...

by Vera von Kreutzbruck  – September 3, 2010 Last winter film director Lisa Cholodenko came to Berlin to present The Kids Are All Right at the International Film Festival. Dressed in black with short dark hair and thick-framed glasses Cholodenko is an outgoing and witty person, who occasionally swears. She has a winning sense of humor, which is reflected in the new movie. Her films portray the clash between conservative and creative milieus,...

by Allison Marcotte | Article Date: 09/03/2010 1:56 PM A bill that would allow same-sex couples to adopt children was passed Thursday by the lower house of parliament in New South Wales, Australia’s most populous state. According to The Australian, the bill passed with a close vote. It will allow same-sex couples to adopt a child together, as they can in the Australian Capital Territory and in Western Australia. “Forty-six MPs voted for the historic...