LGBT + Adoption Rights

What rights do LGBT+ people have to adopt children and where?

• The adoption of children by LGBT+ people has been a controversial subject for many years, and conservative political currents in various countries have reignited the debate.
• LGBT+ families come in various forms: a same-sex couple may adopt jointly, but often there is one biological and one adoptive parent. Occasionally, a single LGBT+ person will adopt on their own.
• Joint adoption by same-sex couples is legal in 27 countries as well as several subnational jurisdictions, and five additional countries permit some form of step-child adoption them.
• Opponents of LGBT adoption argue that it might be detrimental for a child’s development, although research indicates that children fare just as well with same-sex parents.
• LGBT adoption rights are rarely defined explicitly in constitutions or laws, meaning couples often have to rely on judicial decisions that determine what the adoption rights of LGBT persons are.
• But in some countries this may change soon: Polish lawmakers announced a new law banning LGBT people from adopting children even if they are not in a same-sex relationship this summer.
• Hungary went from having one of Eastern Europe’s largest LGBTQ+ movements to passing a law that effectively bans same-sex couples from adopting children.
• And over in the US, the appointment of conservative and devout Catholic Justice Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court has created an uncertain future for LGBT+ families.
• In this reading, we pull together some articles worth catching up on about the current adoption rights situation for LGBT+ people and their families.