Jesus Machado

Literary Review

Abstract

For this interview, a couple of questions were asked to a homosexual individual that
responded with all honesty in regard to his future marriage and possible adoption. This
individual chose to remain anonymous and for this reason he will be referred to as Jack (fake
name). In the interview Jack was asked a couple of questions such as: what are the benefits of
having homosexual parents? How should people react towards homosexual adoption? Jack
answered with all honesty. He firmly believes that homosexual couples should have the same
rights and benefits as heterosexual. Jack stated what separates us (homosexuals) from the rest
of the people (heterosexuals)? Is it because we fall in love and our marriages seemed happier
than the rest? Jack also stated that he would like to get married and start a family. I asked him
if there was anything that worried him about that, to which he responded what worries me
the most, is the prejudice with which people will see my husband and children. Overall this
research concluded that many homosexual couples want to have a family and leave peacefully
without having to be criticized.



Jesus Machado
Introduction

Homosexual individuals have been pushing towards their rights since the late 1990s. The
two main rights that homosexuals want are to get married and have children. Although some it is
illegal to get married and adopt children in most state, there are a few states considering and
allowing granting homosexuals these rights. These decisions are being influenced because more
and more people are revealing their homosexuality. Among these people are celebrities, media,
sport figures among other well-known people such as Darren Young, Robbie Rogers, Ricky
Martin, Ian McKellan among others. One of the biggest influence in homosexual adoption is the
show Modern Family. The show features a homosexual couple that adopts a baby from
Vietnam. This homosexual couple lives a happy life, free of prejudice where their family and
everyone else accept them easily. Although, this might be true, many homosexuals experience
the opposite by facing opposition and rejection by family members and other people. The
purpose of this literature review is to learn and understand how the homosexual community
thinks by conducting primary and secondary research on homosexual adoption. The questions
asked in this interview were done to Jack, a 15 year old homosexual individual. He hopes to one
day find his couple and adopt children that he can raise as his own. It was clear to me that Jack
has had a hard time in trusting people because when he was asked who else knew about his
homosexuality, he responded very few its hard to trust someone with such a big secret.


Jesus Machado
Primary Research/ Interview
The primary research includes a couple of questions done to Jack. This interview was conducted
face-to-face. As the interview was being conducted, Jack was behaving really calm and
responded to each question without hesitation. Jack answered four questions:
1. Does having homosexual parents affect a child, if yes, in what way?
Jack: yes, having homosexual parents will definitely affect children. How? Its simple.
Homosexual couples are different than heterosexual ones, because we stick together in
good and bad, our relationships last longer, which eventually leads us to be better
parents. We homosexuals have a natural love and tendency to support everyone no
matter what.
2. How do you think people should react to homosexual adoption?
Jack: everyone should treat others as they want to be treated. People dont judge
heterosexuals because they want to adopt, then why should they judge homosexuals?
People should accept the fact that homosexuals should have the same rights as
everyone else.
3. Do you plan to get married and/or adopt children?
Jack: well first, I need to find a way on how to tell my loved ones that Im gay. But in
the future, once the majority of the people have opened to the acceptance of gay rights,
then, yes. I would like to get married and adopt two kids
4. How do you think that the legalization of homosexual adoption and marriage could
affect society?
Jesus Machado
Jack: I believe that legalization of homosexual marriages and adoption will bring equality
and more opportunities to the homosexual community. This will eventually lead to
acceptance. It will make society grow to be more opened minded, by accepting our
community, society will take a step further into equality.


Secondary Research
Mallon, G.P. (2006). Lesbian and gay foster and adoptive parents: Recruiting, assessing,
and supporting an untapped resource for children and youth. Washington, DC:
Child Welfare League of America, Inc.
The book talks about how unfortunately many child welfare workers are acting unfairly
towards the children by making it harder for homosexual couples to adopt. These
workers are leaving the gay couples as a last resort adoption couple. The main reason
these welfare workers are doing this is because of prejudices and stereotypes that make
it more difficult for couples to make a successful adoption. This book explains how
legislation has affected the adoption process for homosexuals. This is a good source
because it explains the legal actions that are taking place in homosexual adoption. It is
also a reliable source that was written a couple years ago when gay adoption began
arising.


Jesus Machado
Ryan, S. D., Pearlmutter, S., & Groza, V. (2004). Coming Out of the Closet: Opening
Agencies to Gay and Lesbian Adoptive Parents. Social Work, 49(1), 85-95.
The article talks about how agencies are beginning to open up to gay and lesbian
couples. It says how the success of a homosexual family may depend on the comments
and actions from other people. Even though, homosexual couples have been able to
adopt children before, now a days the process has become more restrictive due to the
fact of homophobia. People with homophobia tend to be heterosexuals that become
overwhelmed with fear when they are near a homosexual. Social workers are being
affected by this and it is becoming more difficult for homosexuals to adopt.
The article is important because it shows a possible limitation in homosexual adoption.
It is the social workers job to facilitate the adoption process for homosexuals. Yet, this
social workers are being affected by peer pressure. The article shows how this may
impact gay adoption in a negative way. It says that Social workers who advocate the
placement of a child with a gay man or lesbian may be subjected to ridicule, ostracism,
and other career-limiting reactions.
Dawn, S., Pliner , & Michael, Coldberg (2013). Gay & Lesbian Adoption FAQ. Retrieved
from http://www.friendsinadoption.org/adopting-with-friends-in-
adoption/index_gay_and_lesbian_adoption.php
Friends in Adoption (FIA) is an non-profit organization that facilitates the adoption
process for gay and lesbian couples as well as those mothers who want to place their
child in adoption. FIAs mission is to focus on the children and their needs by providing
families who are looking forward to adoption. This organization also provides free
Jesus Machado
services to pregnant women, give workshops on the adoption process, to assist people
who have questions on adopting children etc. They have special FAQs sections that are
useful for homosexual couples. FIA provides to commonly asked questions such as, what
to do when your child asks where is mommy or daddy? Or does it take longer for
homosexual couples to adopt? These questions are answered by therapist, Michael
Coldberg. The FIA organization is helpful because homosexuals usually asks themselves
this questions but never ask because they may feel embarrassed or fear rejection. The
site is current so it contains recent information, also people can share their experiences
which is of great support to homosexual couples. The FIA can also be contacted via
email, twitter, Facebook, blog, and phone.
Farr, R. H., & Patterson, C. J. (2013). Coparenting Among Lesbian, Gay, and Heterosexual
Couples: Associations With Adopted Children's Outcomes. Child Development,
84(4), 1226-1240. doi:10.1111/cdev.12046
This article talks about how gay and lesbian parents raise their children. The article
mentions that homosexual parenting is different from heterosexual parenting in the
way that both parents participate equally in the raising of their children. As, where in a
heterosexual family were the mother takes a greater responsibility due to the fact that
the father works and does not spend as much time with the children as the mother does
or vice versa. There have also been studies that show that due to the fact that a childs
parents are homosexual doesnt mean that the child will also be homosexual.
This article is important because it says how homosexual parents treat and raise their
children. This is important because many people may think that gays and lesbians are
Jesus Machado
irresponsible and unorganized. Others might think that because a child has homosexual
parents the future of the child will also be homosexual. Yet this article says the contrary,
which is really important.
Clay, J. W. (1991). Respecting and Supporting Gay and Lesbian Parents. Education
Digest, 56(8), 51-53.
The article talks about how homosexual parents are not being treated as equally as
heterosexual parents. The author says how it may be due to the fact that teaching staff
is really used to dealing with this situation. It is said that one out of ten people is
homosexual. Homosexual parents deal with more problems than heterosexual parents,
because they and their children deal with being judged and avoided. Although, this may
sound bad, this has actually united the homosexual families. The author encourages for
teaching staff to be more supportive with these parents and their children. To have a
better communication for the benefit and future of the children. This article is useful
because it gives a clear idea of how some people are willing to let their judgments aside
and be willing to communicate with homosexual couples who only want what is best for
their children. The article shows an opinion in favor of homosexual parenting. The
article gives an idea of how people who are in favor of homosexual parenting think.
Vanessa, C.K. (March 26, 2013). Should homosexual people be allowed to legally adopt
children?; Each our two teenagers will debate a hot topic. This week. South
China Morning Post. Retrieved from http://0-
www.lexisnexis.com.lib.utep.edu/hottopics/lnacademic/
The article states that homosexuals are a bad influence on children. This is because
parenting affects a child directly. In this case, having a homosexual parents, will lead to a
negative influence. It can potentially affect them as teenagers where many face
Jesus Machado
confusion regarding their sexuality. As a result, many children want to become
homosexuals just as their parents. Reports also noted that children living with
homosexual parents also tend to have a higher chance of suffering domestic violence
and bullying. Homosexuals greatest struggle is that many states do not recognize
homosexual marriages and unions, therefore they cannot adopt children.
Petrossian, V., Shopsin, M., Podkalicki, K., Podkalicki, J., Hofman, C., & Lindo, A. (1998,
March 26). Gay parents' goals no different from straight ones. New York
Amsterdam News. p. 22.
The article describes how most, if not all parents, want one thing: the best for their
children. This article uses that statement to prove that homosexual parenting is not so
different than heterosexual parenting. Both will sacrifice and whatever they have to do,
in order to provide a bright future for their families. The article revealed that the only
difference between homosexual and heterosexual parenting is the fact that people
segregate homosexuals while they accept the straight ones.


Jesus Machado
As the chart shows,
homosexual couples have a good number of children in their household, which is a
positive thing, since it is illegal in most states. The chart also indicates that between
heterosexual and homosexual couples, the gay couples have a greater percentage of
adopted children. On the other hand, the graph shows a big difference between
homosexual households with children.
Conclusion
In conclusion, homosexual adoption has had its positive movements towards equality.
Even though some people agree and disagree, everyone is entitled to have their own
opinion. This report was used by a homosexual individual to voice his thoughts on the
subject. In the end, the audience has the last word, is homosexual adoption favorable or
not?



Jesus Machado
References
Alper, G. (2012, March 12). Gay Adoption Statistics & Facts 2013. Law Office of Gideon
I Alper RSS.Retrieved April 20, 2014, from http://www.galperlaw.com/gay-law-
report/gay-adoption-statistics/
Ford, M. (2013, May 14). Allies & Advocates. A Brief History of Homosexuality in
America. Retrieved April 16, 2014, from http://www.gvsu.edu/allies/a-brief-
history-of-homosexuality-in-america-30.htm
Gay marriage facts and statistics 2013 Associated Press. (2013, March 27). POLITICO.
Retrieved April 18, 2014, from http://www.politico.com/story/2013/03/gay-
marriage-facts-and-statistics-2013-89376.html
Mallon, G.P. (2006). Lesbian and gay foster and adoptive parents: Recruiting, assessing,
and supporting an untapped resource for children and youth. Washington, DC:
Child Welfare League of America, Inc.
Ryan, S. D., Pearlmutter, S., & Groza, V. (2004). Coming Out of the Closet: Opening
Agencies to Gay and Lesbian Adoptive Parents. Social Work, 49(1), 85-95.
Dawn, S., Pliner , & Michael, Coldberg (2013). Gay & Lesbian Adoption FAQ.
Retrieved from http://www.friendsinadoption.org/adopting-with-friends-in-
adoption/index_gay_and_lesbian_adoption.php
Farr, R. H., & Patterson, C. J. (2013). Coparenting Among Lesbian, Gay, and
Heterosexual Couples: Associations With Adopted Children's Outcomes. Child
Development, 84(4), 1226-1240. doi:10.1111/cdev.12046
Clay, J. W. (1991). Respecting and Supporting Gay and Lesbian Parents. Education
Digest, 56(8), 51-53.
Vanessa, C.K. (March 26, 2013). Should homosexual people be allowed to legally adopt
children?; Each our two teenagers will debate a hot topic. This week. South
China Morning Post. Retrieved from http://0-
www.lexisnexis.com.lib.utep.edu/hottopics/lnacademic/
Petrossian, V., Shopsin, M., Podkalicki, K., Podkalicki, J., Hofman, C., & Lindo, A.
(1998, March 26). Gay parents' goals no different from straight ones. New York
Amsterdam News. p. 22.