Interesting. In the old days, this court decision wouldn't have been necessary
because agencies never placed children with gay and lesbian people. That
changed somewhere along the line, aside from the international adoptions. When
I was doing adoption home studies, other countries would not place children
with gay or lesbian parents. I used to write one version of the study for the
foreign court and a full version for Immigration and US courts. Probably, I
could have been prosecuted if anyone had chosen to report me. Of course,
adoption agencies that did home studies would never do that and New York State
was the only state where a qualified social worker could do an adoption home
study on a private, individual basis. But I am probably the only one who did
what I did.
Miriam
-----Original Message-----
From: blind-democracy-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
<blind-democracy-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> On Behalf Of Roger Loran Bailey
(Redacted sender "rogerbailey81" for DMARC)
Sent: Wednesday, June 23, 2021 7:35 PM
To: blind-democracy <blind-democracy@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Subject: [blind-democracy] Pride Month: Supreme Court Sides With Catholic
Church Against Same Sex Couples 9-0
Pride Month: Supreme Court Sides With Catholic Church Against Same Sex Couples
9-0
https://socialistaction.org/2021/06/23/pride-month-supreme-court-sides-with-catholic-church-against-same-sex-couples-9-0/
June 23, 2021
by Ann Montague
Today’s unanimous ruling (Fulton V The City of Philadelphia) states
Philadelphia must allow a “religious exception” to their non discrimination
law. This is a setback for gays and lesbians seeking to be foster parents. The
court ignored the fact that Catholic Social Services (CSS) is funded by public
money.
For many years church based charities have de-emphasized private fund raising
and instead rely on state or municipal contracts. But now they are claiming it
is their right to ignore the non discrimination requirement of their contracts
and maintain their right to discriminate on the basis of sexual orientation.
CSS claim a “religious liberty interest”. They say that the churches that
sponsor them (but do not fund
them) consider homosexuality a sin. Therefore they will not consider gay men or
lesbians as foster parents. The city of Philadelphia stopped placements to CSS
in 2018 because they were violating the non discrimination requirement in their
contract.
Previously the Third Circuit Court had unanimously ruled against CSS saying
that the city is entitled to require compliance with non discrimination
policies. They said that CSS is not entitled to rewrite government contracts to
eliminate anti discrimination clauses.
The unanimous Supreme Court decision requires the City of Philadelphia to renew
its contract with CSS.
The National Association of Social Workers and the Child Welfare League of
America submitted a brief to the court, “A diversity of foster and adoptive
families is needed to ensure all children find permanent loving parents and
gay and lesbian parents are essential partners in this effort.”
CSS wants continued public funding. But it is the public agency that has
official custody of the children and this is why the state has a non
discrimination clause in their legal contract.
The Williams Institute at UCLA states that there is a critical shortage of
adoptive parents and gay people in the US make up an important number. Same
sex parents are 7 times more likely than heterosexual couples to have an
adopted or foster child.
In addition this discrimination not only hurts prospective parents. Most gay
men and lesbians accept special needs children and will provide foster care for
older children who are LGBTQ.
Some people have expressed concern that this decision would start to chip away
at marriage equality. But the issues of adoption and foster care by gay and
lesbian individuals as well as couples had been happening for decades before
same sex marriage was legal. There was a surge in the numbers as the gay
community stepped up and were willing to adopt hard to place infants and
children during the height of the AIDS epidemic. There were no complaints at
that time as no one else seemed to care for these at risk children.
Silence About This Case Was Deafening
June is Pride Month. It is also generally the month when important Supreme
Court decisions are announced. Generally, whenever there is a decision that
will effect the LGBTQ community there is at least a token rally or at least a
presence outside the court. This may seem minimal.
It is not a mass mobilization but it makes a statement that we are watching.
Those who are victims of the Supreme Court will not be silent.
This case was a perfect one for a united community to stand together.
While the immediate victims are gay men and lesbians seeking to be foster
parents, all of us are harmed because who will take in the LGBTQ children if
not us?
Not A Broad Decision?
Some in the legal community take heart in saying it is not a broad decision. It
is not that bad. It is true that CSS wanted a wide ranging decision that gave
religious organizations the right to violate any and all non discrimination
laws and policies. That did not happen but this decision will only embolden
more such cases. They will come and next time let us unite and mobilize our
numbers.
Related Articles
Free Julian Assange Live Event! June 26th 2 PM Oakland, California, USA June
18, 2021 Click here for flyer
Book Reviews: INDIA: HOTBED OF REVOLT
June 6, 2021
By Marty Goodman “Crisis and Predation: India, COVID-19, and Global Finance,”
by the “Research Unit for Political Economy,” Monthly Review Press, 2020 “No
Free Left:
Northern Lights SA Canada: Delegates Pushed Undemocratic NDP Virtual Convention
to the Left May 2, 2021 by Barry Weisleder It may have been the most
undemocratic convention in the 60-year history of the New Democratic Party.
Technical glitches (of which there
--
Irvin D. Yalom “Truth," Nietzsche continued, "is arrived at through disbelief
and skepticism, not through a childlike wishing something were so! Your
patient's wish to be in God's hands is not truth. It is simply a child's
wish—and nothing more! It is a wish not to die, a wish for the eveastingly
bloated nipple we have labeled 'God'! Evolutionary theory scientifically
demonstrates God's redundancy—though Darwin himself had not the courage to
follow his evidence to its true conclusion. Surely, you must realize that we
created God, and that all of us together now have killed him.” ― Irvin D.
Yalom, When Nietzsche Wept