Children raised by same-sex parents may actually be healthier than their peers raised by different-sex parents, according to a new study out of Australia.
Researchers working on the Australian Study of Child Health in Same-Sex Families, still in progress at Melbourne University, have collected data on 315 children of LGB parents and intend to interview another 200. Details:
According to an interim report, children from families with same-sex parents scored higher than the national average for overall health and family cohesion, while there was no statistical difference between them and children of heterosexual couples in areas such as emotional behavior, self-esteem, and time spent with parents.
”Because of the situation that same-sex families find themselves in, they are generally more willing to communicate and approach the issues that any child may face at school, like teasing or bullying,” says lead researcher Simon Crouch in the report. ”This fosters openness and means children tend to be more resilient. That would be our hypothesis.”
Well, whaddaya know. We must be doing something right.
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Today’s Google doodle celebrates what would have been Maurice Sendak’s 85th birthday.
(via lgbtlaughs)
Air Force Major General Patricia Rose became the highest-ranking openly gay officer in the military when she was promoted on May 31.
According to OutServe-SLDN, Rose’s wife, retired Naval Officer Julie Roth, pinned her wife’s second star at a small ceremony led by Rose’s direct supervisor, General Janet Wolfenbarger, the Air Force’s first female four-star general.Rose, a reservist, is the Mobilization Assistant to the Commander, Air Force Materiel Command, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio. She has served in both aircraft maintenance and transportation in seven different commands as a logistician. Her reserve assignments include command of the 36th Aerial Port Squadron at McChord AFB, Washington.Congrats to her!
More and more religious individuals support marriage equality, according to a new survey by the Pew Research Center.
The study found that a majority of both Catholics and white mainline Protestants now support marriage equality. Support for same-sex marriage has increased across the board even among the most traditionally homophobic groups; 23% of white evangelicals now support marriage equality, up from 13% in 2001. In addition, fewer people report that supporting same-sex marriage goes against their religious beliefs.
A third of the people who participated in the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life said their minds changed on marriage equality because someone they know — either family, friend, or other acquaintance — came out to them as LGBT. Equal percentages of people, 18%, said they now support marriage equality because it’s either inevitable and the world is changing, or because they think the government should no longer dictate marriage on a personal level.
As if it needed to be said, support for marriage equality among people who aren’t religiously affiliated is at an all-time high. The more you know!
(Source: the-box-ticker, via fuckyeahlgbt)
In 2011, the book “Hidden Voices: Reflections of a Gay, Catholic Priest” was published by an anonymous author. This month, that author came out.
Father Gary Meier of Saint Louis has announced he’ll publish a new edition of the book, this time with his name attached to it. He created a video explaining his decision (available at the link above) and also wrote a column for the Huffington Post about his choice to come out:
I have tried over the years to reconcile my silence as a gay priest with that of the Church’s increasingly anti-gay stance, but I have been unsuccessful. At the heart of every authentic call to ministry is the desire to live a life of integrity. It was my desire to live a life of integrity that led me to the priesthood and it is that same desire that has led me to where I am today. In the end it became clear that I could no longer be anonymous — that is, I could not live as a gay priest, which means living in silence while publicly pretending to support the hierarchy’s teachings on homosexuality.
A teaching that has caused and continues to cause harm to many gay men and women, young and old, who are looking for acceptance and love but instead find silence and shame. I am especially concerned for our LGBT youth. It’s hard enough to be a “straight” teenager dealing with the standard ups and downs of hormones and emotions, but to be a teenager with same-sex attractions in a community where your spiritual leaders, the people you look to for guidance and affirmation, are telling you that you have a disease like alcoholism and that you’re a threat to life. Can anyone survive it intact? Yet that’s precisely the message our Church is sharing. LGBT youth are hearing that they are disordered, diseased, defective, damaged goods, wrong when they should be right.
I’m in awe of his bravery. The book is available on Amazon and elsewhere if you’re interested!
France’s first ever gay marriage ceremony.
The European court of human rights on Tuesday rejected a request by three Christians to be exempt from Britain’s non-discrimination law. The individuals requesting the exemption argued that serving same-sex couples violated their religious beliefs.
One person was barred from wearing a cross necklace to work, but it was determined that this was because she is a geriatrics nurse and the necklace could interfere with patients’ safety. The second was an authority registrar refusing to perform civil partnership ceremonies for same-sex couples, and the third was a relationship counselor dismissed for saying he might not counsel same-sex couples.
The executive director of Britain’s National Secular Society lauded Tuesday’s ruling as affirming the United Kingdom’s stringent antidiscrimination laws, noting that the court rejected the argument that “religious freedom” trumps individual liberty and equality.
“The principle of equality for all, including for religious believers, is now established and they should stop wasting the time of the courts with these vexatious cases,” Keith Porteous Wood told the Guardian.
Get over yourselves. Discrimination is discrimination, no matter how you try to swing it, and it’s never okay. The court made the right decision on this one.
President Barack Obama today released a statement declaring June to be LGBT Pride Month. His proclamation mentions national progress toward marriage equality, the need for greater protections for transgender people, the passage of ENDA, and the significance of the recently-passed Violence Against Women Act.
Click the link above to read the whole thing. Here’s a snippet:
We have witnessed real and lasting change, but our work is not complete. I continue to support a fully inclusive Employment Non-Discrimination Act, as well as the Respect for Marriage Act. My Administration continues to implement the Affordable Care Act, which beginning in 2014, prohibits insurers from denying coverage to consumers based on their sexual orientation or gender identity, as well as the National HIV/AIDS Strategy, which addresses the disparate impact of the HIV epidemic among certain LGBT sub-communities. We have a long way to go, but if we continue on this path together, I am confident too that one day soon, from coast to coast, all of our young people will look to the future with the same sense of promise and possibility. I am confident because I have seen the talent, passion, and commitment of LGBT advocates and their allies, and I know that when voices are joined in common purpose, they cannot be stopped.
Here’s to Pride!
