Gay adoptn breaks new ground - The Globe and Mail

Contents:

• FIRST OPENLY GAY MAN TO LEGALLY ADOPT CANADA HOP NEW MEMOIR WILL BOOST ADOPTNS
• RIGHTS OF LGBTI PERSONS
• GAY ADOPTN BREAKS NEW GROUND
• THE HUMAN RIGHTS OF LBIAN, GAY, BISEXUAL, TRANSGENR, QUEER, 2-SPIR AND TERSEX PERSONS
• GAY ADOPTN: HOW MON IS GAY ADOPTN AND IS LEGAL?

FIRST OPENLY GAY MAN TO LEGALLY ADOPT CANADA HOP NEW MEMOIR WILL BOOST ADOPTNS

Twenty years after he beme the first openly gay man to legally adopt a child Canada, David McKstry hop that a new book about his long fight to bee a father will spire others to nsir adoptn. The prevailg view was that gay men, and same-sex upl more generally, were unf to be parents.

"'We don't give to homosexuals'After years of difficulti, 1997, he received a fateful phone ll om Canada's then-immigratn mister, Lucienne Robillard. Wh two weeks, each replied wh a terse msage: "We don't give to homosexuals, " McKstry remembered.

RIGHTS OF LGBTI PERSONS

That year, the Supreme Court of Canada upheld a lg that labelled Everett Klippert a "dangero sexual offenr" and threw him prison for admtg he was gay and that he had sex wh other, homosexual Canadians enjoy much more eedom and societal acceptance.

GAY ADOPTN BREAKS NEW GROUND

1965Everett Klippert, a Northwt Terrori mechanic, acknowledg to police that he is gay, has had sex wh men over a 24-year perd and is unlikely to change. In 1967, Klippert is sent to prison fely as a "dangero sex offenr, " a sentence that was backed up by the Supreme Court of Canada that same 22, 1967Jtice Mister Pierre T propos amendments to the Crimal Co which, among other thgs, would relax the laws agast 1969, amendments that Prime Mister Pierre T had proposed when he was jtice mister to the Crimal Co to crimalize homosexualy are passed. "1969T's amendments pass to the Crimal Co, crimalizg homosexualy 20, 1971Everett Klippert is 16, 1977Quebec clus sexual orientatn s Human Rights Co, makg the first provce Canada to pass a gay civil rights law.

All the proposed bills are 5, 1981More than 300 men are arrted followg police raids at four gay bath ho Toronto, the largt mass arrt sce the War Measur Act was voked durg the October Crisis. " The mtee wr that is shocked by the high level of discrimatory treatment of homosexuals Canada.

The report discs the harassment, vlence, physil abe, psychologil opprsn and hate propaganda that homosexuals live wh. "1988Svend Robson go public about beg gay, beg the first member of Parliament to do so. 1991In 1991, Delv Vriend, a lab stctor at Kg's Universy College Edmonton, Alta., was fired om his job bee he is gay.

THE HUMAN RIGHTS OF LBIAN, GAY, BISEXUAL, TRANSGENR, QUEER, 2-SPIR AND TERSEX PERSONS

(Kev Frayer/Canadian Prs)Delw Vriend, a lab stctor at Kg's Universy College Edmonton, Alta., is fired om his job bee he is gay. The ernment ws on appeal 1996 and the cisn is November 1997, the se go to the Supreme Court of Canada and on April 2, 1998, the high urt unanimoly l that the excln of homosexuals om Alberta's Individual Rights Protectn Act is a vlatn of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

The Supreme Court says that the act would be terpreted to clu homosexuals even if the provce don't change .

November 1992The feral urt lifts the untry's ban on homosexuals the ary, allowg gays and lbians to serve the armed 9, 1992As promised, Jtice Mister Kim Campbell troduc Bill C-108, which would add "sexual orientatn" to the Canadian Human Rights Act. But the act, which would also rtrict the fn of "maral stat" to oppose-sex upl, don't pass first June 3, 1993, the Senate pass Bill S-15, another attempt at addg "sexual orientatn" to the Canadian Human Rights Act, but the bill don't make to the Hoe of Commons bee Parliament is dissolved for the 1993 feral 23, 1993In the Mossop se, the Supreme Court of Canada l that the nial of bereavement leave to a gay partner is not discrimatn based on fay stat fed the Canadian Human Rights Act.

GAY ADOPTN: HOW MON IS GAY ADOPTN AND IS LEGAL?

The Supreme Court also not that if Sectn 15 of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms had been argued, the lg might have been 1995The Supreme Court l on the se volvg Jim Egan and Jack Nb, two gay men who sued Ottawa for the right to claim a spoal pensn unr the Old Age Secury Act.

However, all ne judg agree that sexual orientatn is a protected ground and that protectn extends to partnerships of lbians and gay 1995An Ontar Court judge fds that the Child and Fay Servic Act of Ontar g Sectn 15 of the Charter by not allowg same-sex upl to brg a jot applitn for adoptn.

The followg day, Runciman reerat the ernment's posn, sayg the marriag will not be legally 10, 2002Ontar Superr Court Jtice Robert McKnon l that a gay stunt has the right to take his boyiend to the prom.

Officials acknowledge that Hall has the right to be gay, but said permtg the date would send a msage that the church supports his "homosexual liftyle.

The Ontar Superr Court l that prohibg gay upl om marryg is unnstutnal and vlat the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. The provce says will e the notwhstandg clse to avoid regnizg same-sex marriag if Ottawa amends the Marriage, a lg agast gay marriag is expected to be heard B.

Nearly two dozen homosexual upl applied for marriage licenc Ontar on June 17, 2003Prime Mister Jean Chrétien announc legislatn to make same-sex marriag legal, while at the same time permtg church and other relig groups to "sanctify marriage as they see . " Ontar was the first provce to regnize same-sex marriag as 17, 2003Ottawa reveals the exact wordg of legislatn that would allow gay upl to marry.

S., vote to ask Ottawa to regnize same-sex marriage the same way as heterosexual 9, 2003A gay and lbian group go to trial agast the feral ernment an attempt to force Ottawa to extend survivor benefs to exclud gays and lbians. Gay and lbian partners — pursug Canadian Pensn Plan benefs om their ceased partners — say the feral ernment is discrimatg agast them and have filed a $400-ln class-actn 27, 2003Alliance Lear Stephen Harper Thursday fir MP Larry Spencer as fay issu cric after Spencer said homosexualy should be 19, 2003An Ontar urt l that Ottawa has discrimated agast same-sex upl by nyg benefs to those whose partners died before 1998.

This adds to the three origal qutns sent to the top urt 19, 2004The Quebec Court of Appeal l that homosexuals have the right to marry, and that the tradnal fn of marriage is discrimatory and unjtified.

26, 2004The Ontar Court of Appeal l that gays and lbians the provce are entled to survivors' benefs unr the Canada Pensn Plan datg back to 1985. "No church, no temple, no synagogue, no mosque, no relig official will be asked or forced to perform a marriage that is ntrary to their beliefs, " says Prime Mister Pl 25, 2005Four gay upl New Bnswick file papers wh the provce's Court of Appeal askg to refe marriage to clu same-sex unns.

S., the ary's first gay 20, 2005Jason Perro and Col Snow, a same-sex uple om Yellowknife, sue the ernment of the Northwt Terrori over the right to be 23, 2005New Bnswick's Court of Queen's Bench fds the provce's current fn of civil marriage vlat the rights of gay people. Thoands of gays and lbians who uld not marry the untry where they live have travelled to Canada seekg a legal marriage.