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John Lewis. (2017, April 12). Retrieved August 15, 2017, from https://johnlewis.house.gov/john-lewis

LGBT Rights Milestones Fast Facts. (2017, July 04). Retrieved August 15, 2017, from http://www.cnn.com/2015/06/19/us/lgbt-rights-milestones-fast-facts/

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Many milestone events and legislative acts have occurred that have both advanced and injured the LGBT+ community. The positive evens and legislature help to “normalize” LGBT+ people, which enables equality. Some of the most current events leave vast areas of concern for the advancements that have been made, as well as for the continued advancement of the LGBT+ community. Some of the most notable events and legislation include:

July 1961- Illinois became the first state to decriminalize homosexuality by rescinding their sodomy laws

December 1973 -  The American Psychiatric Association removes homosexuality from its list of mental disorders in the DSM-II Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders.

January 1973 - Maryland becomes the first state to statutorily ban same-sex marriage.

March 1982 - Wisconsin becomes the first state to outlaw discrimination based on sexual orientation.

December 1996 -Hawaii's Judge Chang rules that the state does not have a legal right to deprive same-sex couples of the right to marry, making Hawaii the first state to recognize that gay and lesbian couples are entitled to the same privileges as heterosexual married couples

April 2000 - Vermont being comes the first state to legalize civil-unions between same-sex couples

September 2011 - "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" is repealed, ending a ban on gay men and lesbians from serving openly in the military.

September 2012 - The Democratic Party becomes the first major US political party in history to publicly support same-sex marriage on a national platform at the Democratic National Convention.

October 2014 - The United States Supreme Court denies review in five different marriage cases, allowing lower court rulings to stand, and therefore allowing same-sex couples to marry in Utah, Oklahoma, Virginia, Indiana and Wisconsin. The decision opens the door for the right to marry in Colorado, Kansas, North Carolina, South Carolina, West Virginia and Wyoming.

June 2016 - Secretary of Defense Carter announces that the Pentagon is lifting the ban on transgender people serving openly in the US military.

March 1975 - Technical Sergeant Leonard P. Matlovich reveals his sexual orientation to his commanding officer and is forcibly discharged from the Air Force six months later.

November 1993 - President Bill Clinton signs a military policy directive that prohibits openly gay and lesbian Americans from serving in the military, but also prohibits the harassment of "closeted" homosexuals. The policy is known as "Don't Ask, Don't Tell."

September 1996 - President Bill Clinton signs the Defense of Marriage Act, banning federal recognition of same-sex marriage and defining marriage as "a legal union between one man and one woman as husband and wife."

June 2003 - The US Supreme Court strikes down the "homosexual conduct" law, which decriminalizes same-sex sexual conduct

June 2017 - The US Department of Defense announces a six-month delay in allowing transgendered individuals to enlist in the United States military.

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Fueled by the seemingly endless stream of violent acts against LGBT+ individuals and oppression, the LGBT+ social movement has attempted to fight for equality, spanning across decades. The complexity of individuals who identify as LGBT+ makes this fight much more challenging than other civil rights movements. Adding children into the mix makes for an even more challenging fight. The advocates for LGBT+ rights have compelled the creation of this act by highlighting the children of LGBT+ parents, comparing them to the children “aging out” of the foster care system. Statistics show that children of LGBT+ households are not at any disadvantage when compared to their counterparts raised in two family, or heterosexual households. In dark contrast, foster children “aging out” show increases in incarceration rates, early pregnancy, poverty and homelessness. The movement has been able to utilize this information to show that the need for foster and adoptive families is great, and that LGBT+ households are just as prepared to fill this need as any other household.

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Ideological tension proliferates the topic of same sex couples adopting children or becoming foster parents. Society is currently about 50/50 pro/against on the topic; however, the divide is much more uneven when looking at conservatives vs. liberals. The ruling ideology about the family has been conservative, and seeped in the traditional family, a heterosexual two parent household. Liberalism has ushered in ideology forming “the family” to “families”. Focusing on the ideas that a loving home is what matters most to raising healthy, well-adjusted children, and anyone is capable of providing this. Liberals do not adhere to the ideology that the traditional family is the natural order of things, as conservatives tend to do. They not only believe that the family can be diversified, but also fight for government policies that enable and protect diverse family units.

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Children who "age out" of the foster care system have been shown to have increased incarceration, early pregnancy, poverty, and homelessness. The cost saving by of increasing adoption rates of children in the foster care system are estimated between $3,300,000,000 and $6,300,000,000. This provides huge economic incentive to increase the number of eligible adoptive households.

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The United States being a democracy in which all people have equal rights to, amongst others, freedom, human rights and political power. This guides in the LGBT+ interest groups to fight for the equality for, not only the LGBT+ right to adopt and foster children, but the children who identify as LGBT+ rights to be placed in a safe, nurturing, accepting home and environment. Democrat, Congressman John Lewis sponsors this act. Growing up during the civil rights era Mr. Lewis was highly active in the civil movement of the time. He has a long history of advocating for human rights, even being referred to as “the conscience of the U.S. congress” (John Lewis, 2017). Congressman Lewis has been quoted as saying “I have fought too long and hard to end discrimination based on race and color to allow discrimination based on gender identity to be considered acceptable.” (John Lewis, 2017). Lewis’ strong commitment to human rights has helped to carry the Every Child Deserves a Family Act into congress.

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Lesbian Parents: Tess and Nikina’s Story

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Love Comes First: Creating LGBT Families Learn more at: http://lovecomesfirst.com

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https://www.congress.gov/bill/115th-congress/house-bill/2640/titles
https://www.acf.hhs.gov/cb/resource/afcars-report-23
http://michiganradio.org/post/how-adoption-agencies-discriminate-against-hopeful-lgbt-parents
http://www.hrc.org/resources/every-child-deserves-a-family-act

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The American Psychological Association, the American Medical Association, the American Academy of Pediatrics, the North American Council on Adoptable Children, the National Adoption Center, the Child Welfare League of America, and the American Bar Association

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1. Increasing adoption rates, in addition to establishing permanency and decreasing risk factors for foster youth, can yield annual national cost savings between $3,300,000,000 and $6,300,000,000.
2. Allow SS couples to adopt members of their own kin
3. Reduce the number of children in foster care awaiting adoption

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This bill would not allow agencies to discriminate against Same-Sex couples for foster care or adoption based on the principle of religious freedom. It also would not allow foster families to turn away children on the bases of their sexual orientation/ gender identity
-ECDFA was introduced in the House of Representatives by Reps. John Lewis (D-GA) and Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL) on May 24, 2017, and in the Senate by Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) on June 7, 2017.

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Despite same-sex adoption being legal in all 50-states, adoption agencies are allowed to deny SS foster parents/ adoptive parents based on "religious freedom". A recent quote from Bethany Christian Services: “At Bethany, we would never deny a family for their secular status, or single-parent, or anything of that nature. However, if the family would be in conflict with our religious beliefs, we would assist them to go to another agency.”

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The bill was initiated for two reasons: 1) to address the discriminatory policies keeping same-sex couples from adopting 2) to prohibit foster families from turning away a child due to their sexual orientation or gender identity

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Number of Children in Foster Care/Awaiting Adoption

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Number of Children in Foster Care/Awaiting Adoption

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According to the Children's Bureau, in 2015 427,910 children entered foster care in 2015. 111,820 of which are waiting to be adopted.
53,549 children were adopted in 2015, while 20,789 youth “aged out” of the foster care system.