Why Gay Adoption Matters in the Florida Governor's Race

Florida is one of two states that have instituted bans on adoption for LGBT families, sharing the dubious honor with Arkansas. Thankfully, there's movement in Florida to overturn this out-dated law that not only fosters homophobia, but punishes children by keeping them away from healthy families.

First a judge last year in Miami ruled that the ban on gay adoption was illegal. Then came word this week that a candidate for governor in Florida, Alex Sink, supports overturning the ban.

That's huge news, in part because Alex Sink's opponent in the Governor's race -- current state Attorney General Bill McCollum -- proudly defends the ban on gay adoption and believes that homosexuality fosters depression and psychological illness. Those are McCollum's exact words in a lawsuit filed to keep the gay adoption ban in place. Seems like he'd rather have children languish in America's foster care system than see them placed with qualified and outstanding parents.

To be clear, nearly every single study on adoption shows that not only do children do well when they are placed with LGBT parents, but they in some cases outperform children raised by straight parents. Moreover, massive numbers of studies show that gay parents are just as gifted and qualified to raise children than straight parents.

Sink's comments underscore that very fact, and place Florida children above partisan social issue politics. McCollum's words and deeds, on the contrary, keep children from being raised in healthy homes, and hold them hostage to a right-wing agenda hell-bent on using faith instead of science and the principle of equality to best determine state adoption policy.

Sink gave her remarks at a fundraiser for Equality Florida, the state's largest LGBT rights group. During the event, which raised upwards of $175,000 for equal rights in Florida, Sink said that there's nothing wrong with gay parents adopting if they'll provide happy and healthy homes for children.

"We need a system in which all of our children are assured that they live in a healthy, loving home -- a home that's determined not by any law," Sink said. "As a mom I think it has to go by every individual case and no one or one individual ought to be automatically discriminated against. The judge should go by what is best for the child."

Oddly enough, McCollum has won some plaudits from gay rights groups for supporting expanded hate crimes protections in the state that included sexual orientation. In 2004, a political opponent even branded him a "darling of homosexual activists." But that support for hate crimes laws hasn't translated over to working toward an end to Florida's gay adoption ban. At least not yet.

It's an awesome sign that a year before the election, this is becoming an issue in the Florida governor's race. That gives 11 more months to keep hammering away at the issue, in hopes that voters remember Florida kids -- who are ultimately the losers in this ban on gay adoption -- when they cast their ballot next year.

(Photo courtesy of Raphael Goetter's photostream on Flickr.)