Florida appeals court strikes down gay adoption ban

[John Dibble]

http://www.cnn.com/2010/US/09/22/florida.gay.adoptions/

Florida appeals court strikes down gay adoption ban

By the CNN Wire Staff
September 22, 2010 4:55 p.m. EDT

(CNN) -- A Florida appeals court Wednesday struck down a state law barring gay men and lesbians from adoption on the basis of equal protection under law.

Shortly after the ruling, Gov. Charlie Crist -- who is running for a U.S. Senate seat as an independent -- announced that he would not enforce the ban in light of the ruling.

The Florida 3rd District Court of Appeal upheld a trial court ruling that Florida's explicit ban was unconstitutional, noting that the state's adoption law required officials to assess potential adoptive parents in "the best interests of the child."

"By the time of the trial below, the application of the statutory ban was contrary to both the professional judgment of the Department and the legislative directive to assure 'the best interest of the child' in 'every' adoption," wrote Judge Cindy S. Lederman in the 42-page ruling.

The case involved a gay man who was a licensed foster parent, allowed under Florida law, who wanted to adopt two boys who had been placed in his care after the Department of Children and Families removed them from their home for neglect.

Continued

[John Dibble]

that should go over well

For people who enjoy equality, yes. Probably not with the homophobes and bigots.

Give a concrete and objective reason as to why adoption should be given to one segment of the population and not to another.

Where does the Constitution guarantee the right to adoption?

Because a child should be raised by both a mother and father figure in their life. That means, male and female. It's basic human psychology. Why do you think you know better then 50k years of human nature?

Even if we assume this premise is correct (which I do not) that doesn't validate not allowing gay adoption given the reality of things. There are more orphans and foster children than the system is able to find stable families with both a mother and a father for. Unless you can provide evidence that a stable, loving home with a gay couple of either sex would be worse for the child than being bounced from one foster home to the next then your reasoning isn't sufficient even if it is true.