Research Paper Quotes

Source 1: What’s Marriage (and Family) Got to Do With It? Support for Same-Sex Marriage, Legal Unions, and Gay and Lesbian Couples Raising Children 

Becker, Amy B. "What's Marriage (And Family) Got To Do With It? Support For Same-Sex Marriage, Legal Unions, And Gay And Lesbian Couples Raising Children." Social Science Quarterly (Wiley-Blackwell) 93.4 (2012): 1007-1029. Academic Search Complete. Web. 12 Apr. 2016.

• "At present, '86% of Americans say a single parent and child constitute a family; nearly as many (80%) say an unmarried couple living together with a child is a family; and 63% say a gay or lesbian couple raising a child is a family' (Pew 8)."
• The different types of data represented to show different family home settings help the reader to see the comparison of families in america. 

Source 2: Child Custody and Homosexual/Bisexual Parents: A Survey of Judges

Raley, Jesse A., et al. "Child Custody And Homosexual/Bisexual Parents: A Survey Of Judges." Journal Of Child Custody 10.1 (2013): 54-67. Academic Search Complete. Web. 12 Apr. 2016.

• "The overall current body of literature suggests that a parent’s sexual orientation in and of itself has no detrimental effect on the development and adjustment of children and adolescents; instead quality of relationships among family members is fair more predictive of developmental outcomes (Raley 3)."
• This quote reinforces that the psychological effect of having same sex parents is not as much as a factor as people who argue that it is.

Source 3: How Judges Decide Whether Social Parents Have Parental Rights: A Five-Factor Typology

Miller, Monica K. "How Judges Decide Whether Social Parents Have Parental Rights: A Five-Factor Typology." Family Court Review49.1 (2011): 72-83. Academic Search Complete. Web. 12 Apr. 2016.

• "The law affects family life in many ways; for instance, laws indicate whom and when we can marry, under what circumstances we can obtain a divorce, who can adopt children, what rights and responsibilities come with parenting, and what happens when we do not uphold our parental responsibilities (Miller 1)."
• While people think they are free to live their lives as they please, the government has more authority over our lives than we do.

Source 4: Social Stigma and the Situation of Young People in Lesbian and Gay Stepfamilies

Robitaille, Caroline, and Marie-Christine Saint-Jacques. "Social Stigma And The Situation Of Young People In Lesbian And Gay Stepfamilies." Journal Of Homosexuality 56.4 (2009): 421-442.Academic Search Complete. Web. 12 Apr. 2016.

• "In the United States, recent data compiled by the Census Bureau indicate that at least 250,000 children were raised by a same-sex couple (Gates & Ost, 2004)."
• While a lot of people think that american's aren't typically homosexual parents, this data proves that many american children are raised in homosexual homes.

Source 5: Children of the Closet: A Measurement of the Anxiety and Self-Esteem of Children Raised by a Non-Disclosed Homosexual or Bisexual Parent

Murray, Paul D., and Karen McClintock. "Children Of The Closet: A Measurement Of The Anxiety And Self-Esteem Of Children Raised By A Non-Disclosed Homosexual Or Bisexual Parent."Journal Of Homosexuality 49.1 (2005): 77-95. Academic Search Complete. Web. 12 Apr. 2016.

• "Disclosure produces a more emotionally close relationship as it is built on openness and honesty (Robinson & Barret, 1986)."
• As parents decide they are ready to come out of the closet and reveal their sexuality, it creates a bond with the child and parent because they go through the process together.

Source 6: NEIL PATRICK HARRIS How Fatherhood Changed Me

Strohm, Emily. "NEIL PATRICK HARRIS How Fatherhood Changed Me." People 84.14 (2015): 72-75.Academic Search Complete. Web. 13 Apr. 2016.

• “There is nothing greater than arriving home and they run down the stairs and jump into your arms and give you a magnificent hug that doesn’t end,” Harris says of life as a dad.
• Even celebrities have to face the struggles of adoption in order to create a family, but Neil Patrick Harris discusses some of the many benefits of being a father to his twins.

Model Argument #2: 30 Days

For it:

• gay parents are not accidental, they are very intentional and raise their children how they choose
• defining someone else's morality as immoral is wrong
• the girl had lesbian moms and step mom and real dad said that her lifestyle is normal in both homes
• happy homes breed good children, if a parent is not being true to herself then they aren't creating a happy home
• it is better for foster children to get put into gay or lesbian families than to get put into a group home because you will never feel comfortable, its more like a prison
• these kids are neglected and abandoned not delinquent

Against it:

• god said man and wife make babies which is why men don't have a womb
• young kids have to make the huge decision to choose whether or not to tell people about having gay parents
• doesn't want kids raised in a non-heterosexual household so they don't learn to be gay

     Same sex parenting is a very controversial topic, as people vary on their stance on gay or lesbian people being good parents. For some people, the issue is morality; they believe that being gay is a sin and is morally incorrect, and kids shouldn't be brought up in a home like this because it would just confuse them. It is hard to differentiate for people who think this because if kids in foster care are not adopted, they will be put into group homes and not be able to live a quality life like normal children in a loving and safe home. In the documentary, the woman who advocated against gay parents claimed that God said man and wife make babies which is why men don't have a womb. Obviously, men are not able to conceive, but that does not mean that he is any less qualified to be a parent than a heterosexual couple. She also argues that young kids have to make the huge decision to choose whether or not to tell people about having gay parents. While this may be true, it is also something that at a young age is hard to understand, so often times kids won't think anything of it. 

     In my personal opinion, I believe that love is love, regardless of gender. A homosexual couple is just as suited to love their children as a straight parent is to theirs. It isn't morally right, to me, to say that it is "morally more correct" to let children waste their childhoods in a group home when there are perfectly happy, loving and welcome homes out there who want children that are gay. Like one of the fathers in the documentary says, "defining someone else's morality as immoral is wrong." In this film, one of the children interviewed that was raised in by lesbians said, "happy homes breed good children, if a parent is not being true to herself then they aren't creating a happy home." Coming from a kid who understands what it is like to be raised in a heterosexual home, this information is key because she has a better outlook than someone who is outside of the situation looking in. 

     Children who are neglected and abandoned who are put into foster care and group homes aren't delinquents, they are misunderstood and are longing for a home with loving parents. For a person to deprive someone of this right because they can't understand that type of love is immoral because you aren't hurting the same sex couple, you're ruining the children's chance at a normal childhood. 

Issues For Research

Advocacy: public support for, or recommendation of, a particular cause or policy.
It means: that a person speaks or writes in support or defense of a person or cause.
Importance: to inform people about a specific matter that deserves to have some light shed on it.

1. LGBTQ+ Rights: 
• Parenting for LGBTQ partners is a lot more challenging since they can't procreate with one another. 
• The adoption process is often more bias and not helpful if the couple is gay.
• 
  
2. Social/Cultural Messages:
• Society has put too much of an emphasis on the cultural ideal that no one can live up to.
• Advertisements distorting our own images of natural health for both women and men.
• Young children are affected by advertisements and the way they present themselves is affected as a result.
3. Politics
• Campaigne parties are unfair if one candidate has more influence going into a primary, because they will gain more support which will lead to more money to fund them which will lead to more funds to keep campaigning.
• People aren't getting equal chances to run for office.
4. Global Warming
• 
  

Argument #1: Kilbourne. What is her argument? What is she advocating for?

     In this lecture, Kilbourne offers insight to the audience on the different ways that we are affected by advertising. She expresses how the influence of advertising is being brought to people of all ages, even infants. In her lecture she states "babies at the age of 6 months can recognize corporate logos, and that's the age that marketers are now starting to target: our children." This small fact is shocking to me because when I was 6 months old, I was just learning how to walk, let alone talk out loud. The fact that a child this age is able to see a logo and recognize what company it is makes me think that our society puts too much importance on certain industries and how we, as a community, need to make sure that children are being educated properly and not through a screen. 

     Another issue that society faces is the societal pressure that is put on women to be represented as what has been emphasized as societies view of "physical perfection." In teen magazines, girls are taught at a young age to be self conscious of their body's because there is such thing as a "perfect body." In this day and age, our society should not be benefitting off of our insecurities, but large industries are in fact using our insecurities to their advantage in advertising. Kilbourne expresses that "our girls are getting the message today, so young, that they have to be incredibly thin, and beautiful, and hot, and sexy, and that they're going to fail; because there's no way to measure up to this impossible ideal." Here, Kilboune is acknowledging that advertisements are created with the intent to put girls down so that they will want to live up to this ideal mindset, so that they will want to buy the company's products. This tactic is detrimental to our society because it is teaching young adults that they will never live up to their potential because there will always be someone out there that is prettier, or thinner, or happier than she is. 

     An issue that is the most problematic in my eyes is the objectification of women. In ads, women are depicted in little to no clothes, forced to look sexy so that the viewer will want to strive to this beacon of perfection. In Kilbourne's lecture she states that "when women are objectified, there's always the threat of sexual violence, there's always intimidation, there's always the possibility of danger; and women live in a world defined by that threat." As women become more and more sexual in the way they dress/represent themselves, they are more susceptible to violence because male's minds are wired in a different way. If a girl looks a certain way, a boy can take it as a go ahead to talk to her in a way he normally wouldn't if she looked differently.