Gay adoptn legal Victoria | — Atralia’s leadg news se

Contents:

• GAY UPL VICTORIA FIGHTG FOR THE RIGHT TO ADOPT THEIR OWN CHILDREN
• GAY ADOPTN LEGAL VICTORIA
• FROM FOSTER TO 'FOREVER' PARENTS: ONE GAY UPLE'S PATH TO ADOPTNDPE SAME-SEX ADOPTN BEG LEGAL ACROSS THE ENTIRE UNTRY - AND WA LEADG THE WAY 16 YEARS AGO - 'S FAR OM AN EASY ROAD TO CREATG A FAY.THE UPCROFTS ON A FAY HOLIDAY. SOURCE: SUPPLIEDTHIS MONTH THE NORTHERN TERRORY BEME THE LAST OF ATRALIA'S STAT AND TERRORI TO LET GAY UPL ADOPT. THE TERRORY PARLIAMENT AGREED TO CHANGE AN ADOPTN LAW THAT HAD PREVLY LIMED THE RIGHT TO ADOPT CHILDREN TO MARRIED HETEROSEXUAL UPL, OR THOSE TRADNAL ABORIGAL MARRIAG.IN ALAI, FLRS UNIVERSY ASSOCIATE PROFSOR DAMIEN RIGGS HAS REARCHED FOSTER RE AND ADOPTN ATRALIA AND SAYS THERE ARE STILL SOME BARRIERS TO SAME-SEX ADOPTN.HE SAYS FOSTER-RE AGENCI N STILL REJECT APPLITNS OM LGBTIQ PEOPLE ON RELIG GROUNDS, RCG THE RAT OF ADOPTN BY SAME-SEX UPL. "THERE STILL IS A POSSIBILY THAT SOME AGENCI WOULD SAY, 'NO, WE WON'T ASSS THAT ONE,' SO THAT HAS KNOCK-ON EFFECTS FOR ADOPTN, IF 'S ADOPTN OM RE," DR RIGGS SAYS. "IF YOU N'T BEE A RER THE FIRST PLACE, THEN THAT'S GOG TO LIM YOUR ADOPTN OPTNS." DR RIGGS SAYS, WHILE THE LEGAL BARRIERS TO ADOPTN FOR SAME-SEX UPL ARE GONE, GAS REPRODUCTIVE MEDICE MEAN MANY LGBTIQ PEOPLE MAY TAKE THE SCIENTIFIC ROUTE TO CREATG A FAY."IT'S TERTG WHICH ONE HAS BEEN TAKEN UP MORE, AND I WOULD SAY THAT FOSTER RE AND ADOPTN HAS BEEN TAKEN UP LS MONLY BY LBIAN AND GAY UPL THAN HAS IVF OR SURROGACY."MAKG THE UPCROFTS AN OFFICIAL FAYEARLY ON THEIR RELATNSHIP PL AND BRENDAN UPCROFT CID THEY WANTED TO HAVE CHILDREN, A DREAM THEY HAVE ACHIEVED, FIRSTLY THROUGH FOSTERG AND, FALLY THROUGH ADOPTN. FOR THE UPLE, ADOPTG THEIR TWO FOSTER CHILDREN - SIBLGS AIDAN AND KALEB - BROUGHT A EP SENSE OF RELIEF.THE UPCROFTS ON THE DAY THE ADOPTN WAS OFFICIALLY FALISED. SOURCE: SUPPLIEDTHE TWO BOYS, AGED 13 AND 11, HAD BEEN THEIR RE SCE 2014, BUT ADOPTN WAS THE FAL STEP THE FORMATN OF THE FAY OM THE NEW SOUTH WAL REGNAL CY OF MALAND.PL UPCROFT SAYS THAT WHEN HE HAD ASKED HIS YOUNGT SON HOW HE FELT ABOUT THE ADOPTN, HE RPOND WH RERVED ENTHIASM. "KALEB, WE MENTNED TO HIM THAT FRIDAY'S THE DAY WE'RE GOG TO THE URT TO SEE THE JUDGE," MR UPCROFT RELLS.BROTHERS KALEB AND AIDAN WERE FOSTER RE FOR NE YEARS BEFORE THEY WERE ADOPTED BY BRENDAN AND PL UPCROFT. SOURCE: SUPPLIED"IT JT SORT OF WENT OVER HIM. AND I ASKED HIM THE NEXT DAY, AND HE SAID, 'OH, 'S ALL ON THE SI, 'S ALL ON THE SI.' SO, THEY LOVE BEG PART OF THE UPCROFT FAY." ATRALIAN INSTUTE OF HEALTH AND WELFARE STATISTICS SHOW MORE THAN 46,000 ATRALIAN CHILDREN NOW LIVE OUT-OF-HOME RE, WH MORE THAN 40 PER CENT RE FOR AT LEAST FIVE YEARS. KALEB AND AIDAN HAVE SPENT MUCH OF THEIR SHORT LIV FOSTER RE, TOO, BUT, WHEN BOTH AGREED TO BE ADOPTED BY THE UPCROFTS, THE CHANGE WAS MA. BRENDAN UPCROFT SAYS, FOR HIS PARTNER AND HIM, WAS ABOUT GIVG THE BOYS A SENSE OF SECURY. "THE OTHER DRIVER BEHD MOVG TO ADOPTN WAS THE STABILY THAT PROVIS OUR SONS. AIDAN AND KALEB HAVE NOW BEEN FOSTER RE FOR ALMOST NE YEARS. AND WHILST 'S BEEN A VERY STABLE THREE-AND-A-HALF YEARS LIVG WH , ALWAYS HANGG OVER THEIR HEADS IS THE FACT THAT THGS ULD CHANGE, THE AGENCY ULD SUDNLY E AND SAY TO THEM, 'RIGHT, WE NEED TO MOVE YOU TO A DIFFERENT PLACEMENT.'"NOW, THEY HAVE STABILY, AND THEY'LL BE WH THEIR PARENTS NOW FOREVER."BLOGIL PARENTS N STILL PLAY A ROLE CHILDREN'S LIVDPE THE CREASGLY LONG-TERM NATURE OF OUT-OF-HOME RE, FEW LONG-TERM PLACEMENTS LEAD TO ADOPTN.LAST YEAR, JT 315 ADOPTNS WERE FALISED ATRALIA, CLUDG TERNATNAL ADOPTNS, WH ABOUT 45 PER CENT BY KNOWN RERS SUCH AS FOSTER PARENTS OR RELATIV.AMONG LOL ADOPTNS, ABOUT 88 PER CENT ALLOW SOME GREE OF NTACT OR THE EXCHANGE OF RMATN BETWEEN BLOGIL AND ADOPTIVE FAI.BRENDAN UPCROFT SAY ADOPTN HAS GIVEN THE BOYS SECURY. SOURCE: SUPPLIEDTHE UPCROFTS SAY THEY THK IS IMPORTANT THEIR SONS MATA NTACT WH THEIR BIRTH MOTHER."WE HAVE A REALLY FLUID RELATNSHIP WH THEIR BIRTH MUM," BRENDAN UPCROFT SAYS."WE MA A LOT OF MMENTS TO HER OM OUR VERY FIRST MEETG, AND WE'VE WORKED REALLY HARD TO MAKE SURE THAT ALL OF THOSE MMENTS HAVE BEEN MET OR, SOME S, SURPASSED. THE DAYS, 'S LS OF A VISATN SCHLE AND MORE OF JT AN ARRANGEMENT WHEREBY WE TCH UP."THE BIRTH MOTHER RECENTLY SPENT AN ENTIRE DAY WH THE BOYS AND HAS JOED THEM FOR BIRTHDAYS. SHARE4 M READPUBLISHED 23 MARCH 2018 2:21PMUPDATED 26 MARCH 2018 7:38AMBY PEGGY GIAKOUMELOSTAGSSOCIAL ISSUSHARE THIS WH FAY AND IENDSCOPY LKSHAREREMEND FOR YOU
• ATRALIA'S FIRST MISTER FOR EQUALY TO REFORM GAY ADOPTN LAWS
• VICTORIA LEGALIS ADOPTN RIGHTS FOR GAY UPL
• VICTORIAN BILL BANNG GAY NVERSN THERAPY PASS UPPER HOE AS AMENDMENTS FAIL

GAY UPL VICTORIA FIGHTG FOR THE RIGHT TO ADOPT THEIR OWN CHILDREN

Farrah Tomaz Cocks and her partner Sam still remember the homophobic qutns they had to remember the social worker who ma clear she was termed to stop "those lbians" gag permanent re of the child they had fostered for uple Anna Vla and Belle Atria wh their children Lily, 5, and Benji, 6, at home Northte. Cred: Pl JeffersThey also rell beg asked to expla how they uld provi a nurturg home pared wh tradnal heterosexual who uld fet the judgmental psychologist, who asssed their pacy to raise children by askg about their sex life, or whether they attend gay and lbian ralli, and which woman "played the man" their and his dads, Pete and Matt, who shared their story the documentary Gayby Kate Disher-Quill"She nclud that Sam played the man bee she do the lawn mowg, " Cocks says. Cred: Penny StephensAs the bate around same-sex marriage tensifi natnally, Tracey and Sam are one of the many upl who fd themselv a separate battle for equaly: this time, over Victoria's adoptn other Atralian jurisdictns legalised gay adoptn years ago, Victoria's Adoptn Act – which the Andrews ernment is set to overhl – lims such rights to sgle people, or heterosexual upl who are married or facto rult is an illogil suatn where same-sex upl n bee foster rers but n't adopt a child permanently – even if that child has been their re for n a lbian or a gay man formally adopt their partner's children om a prev relatnship, or jotly adopt a niece or nephew whose parents had died, or even jotly adopt a child born through surrogacy or IVF.

In the rridors of power at Sprg Street, legislatn has quietly been drafted to brg Victoria to le wh NSW, Wtern Atralia, Tasmania and the ACT, where adoptn equaly has been a realy for chang are expected later this year, givg same-sex upl the right to adopt children known to them (such as those step-parent fai or unr permanent re, which make up the bulk of adoptns) and also the right to adopt unknown fants (which acunt for about 20 adoptns per year) safeguards may be put place, but the fundamental pot is that discrimatn between gay and heterosexual upl who want to adopt will no longer exist unr the law.

GAY ADOPTN LEGAL VICTORIA

Gay adoptn was remend a 240-page review by the Victorian Law Reform Commissn 2007, but the then Bmby ernment lacked the polil urage to take up the difference now is that muny attus have changed, and so too has Daniel Andrews, a former Bmby mister who has recently st himself as a rabow warrr when gay g to office ne months ago, the 43-year-old Catholic father-of-three has not only bee the first Victorian premier to lead Melbourne's Pri March, he's also bee the first lear to create a dited "equaly" portfol wh his bet, the first to appot a sexualy and genr missner, and the first to make the removal of discrimatn for lbian, gay, bisexual, transgenr and tersex (LGBTI) people a central plank of his first-term, last week, when the Baird ernment banned NSW schools om screeng Gayby Baby, a documentary about the liv of four children om same-sex fai, Andrews took to Facebook to scribe the move as "cel bbish".

Opposn lear Matthew Guy has prevly revealed he personally supported same-sex adoptn and would allow Liberal MPs a nscience vote when legislatn is troduced, but has also told The Sunday Age he would be "fortable" givg exemptns to fah-based agenci "provid there are still servic to look after gay upl" ernment, however, appears to have taken a different view.

"It's the kd of sentiment that Gayby Baby director Maya Newell would no doubt wele given the events of recent the child of two lbians who shared their 30th anniversary this year, Newell rells growg up a world where her fay stcture was rarely reprented the media, and where beg open about same-sex parentg was Baby was signed to buck the trend, givg the muny an sight to four children growg up same-sex hoeholds. However, the are nservative timat, bee they don't necsarily pture children wh sgle same-sex parents, hoeholds whose parents may refe to intify as same-sex attracted due to stigma, or children livg -parented arrangements or across two Atralian Instute of Fay Studi also timat that 11 per cent of Atralian gay men and 33 per cent of lbians have children, although is hard to quantify how many fai have formally adopted, let alone how many would want Street policy director Julian Pock – whose agency has spent the past few years actively recg gay upl to bee foster rers – reckons a "signifint and growg number" of Victorian rers would jump at the opportuny if given the chance.

FROM FOSTER TO 'FOREVER' PARENTS: ONE GAY UPLE'S PATH TO ADOPTNDPE SAME-SEX ADOPTN BEG LEGAL ACROSS THE ENTIRE UNTRY - AND WA LEADG THE WAY 16 YEARS AGO - 'S FAR OM AN EASY ROAD TO CREATG A FAY.THE UPCROFTS ON A FAY HOLIDAY. SOURCE: SUPPLIEDTHIS MONTH THE NORTHERN TERRORY BEME THE LAST OF ATRALIA'S STAT AND TERRORI TO LET GAY UPL ADOPT. THE TERRORY PARLIAMENT AGREED TO CHANGE AN ADOPTN LAW THAT HAD PREVLY LIMED THE RIGHT TO ADOPT CHILDREN TO MARRIED HETEROSEXUAL UPL, OR THOSE TRADNAL ABORIGAL MARRIAG.IN ALAI, FLRS UNIVERSY ASSOCIATE PROFSOR DAMIEN RIGGS HAS REARCHED FOSTER RE AND ADOPTN ATRALIA AND SAYS THERE ARE STILL SOME BARRIERS TO SAME-SEX ADOPTN.HE SAYS FOSTER-RE AGENCI N STILL REJECT APPLITNS OM LGBTIQ PEOPLE ON RELIG GROUNDS, RCG THE RAT OF ADOPTN BY SAME-SEX UPL. "THERE STILL IS A POSSIBILY THAT SOME AGENCI WOULD SAY, 'NO, WE WON'T ASSS THAT ONE,' SO THAT HAS KNOCK-ON EFFECTS FOR ADOPTN, IF 'S ADOPTN OM RE," DR RIGGS SAYS. "IF YOU N'T BEE A RER THE FIRST PLACE, THEN THAT'S GOG TO LIM YOUR ADOPTN OPTNS." DR RIGGS SAYS, WHILE THE LEGAL BARRIERS TO ADOPTN FOR SAME-SEX UPL ARE GONE, GAS REPRODUCTIVE MEDICE MEAN MANY LGBTIQ PEOPLE MAY TAKE THE SCIENTIFIC ROUTE TO CREATG A FAY."IT'S TERTG WHICH ONE HAS BEEN TAKEN UP MORE, AND I WOULD SAY THAT FOSTER RE AND ADOPTN HAS BEEN TAKEN UP LS MONLY BY LBIAN AND GAY UPL THAN HAS IVF OR SURROGACY."MAKG THE UPCROFTS AN OFFICIAL FAYEARLY ON THEIR RELATNSHIP PL AND BRENDAN UPCROFT CID THEY WANTED TO HAVE CHILDREN, A DREAM THEY HAVE ACHIEVED, FIRSTLY THROUGH FOSTERG AND, FALLY THROUGH ADOPTN. FOR THE UPLE, ADOPTG THEIR TWO FOSTER CHILDREN - SIBLGS AIDAN AND KALEB - BROUGHT A EP SENSE OF RELIEF.THE UPCROFTS ON THE DAY THE ADOPTN WAS OFFICIALLY FALISED. SOURCE: SUPPLIEDTHE TWO BOYS, AGED 13 AND 11, HAD BEEN THEIR RE SCE 2014, BUT ADOPTN WAS THE FAL STEP THE FORMATN OF THE FAY OM THE NEW SOUTH WAL REGNAL CY OF MALAND.PL UPCROFT SAYS THAT WHEN HE HAD ASKED HIS YOUNGT SON HOW HE FELT ABOUT THE ADOPTN, HE RPOND WH RERVED ENTHIASM. "KALEB, WE MENTNED TO HIM THAT FRIDAY'S THE DAY WE'RE GOG TO THE URT TO SEE THE JUDGE," MR UPCROFT RELLS.BROTHERS KALEB AND AIDAN WERE FOSTER RE FOR NE YEARS BEFORE THEY WERE ADOPTED BY BRENDAN AND PL UPCROFT. SOURCE: SUPPLIED"IT JT SORT OF WENT OVER HIM. AND I ASKED HIM THE NEXT DAY, AND HE SAID, 'OH, 'S ALL ON THE SI, 'S ALL ON THE SI.' SO, THEY LOVE BEG PART OF THE UPCROFT FAY." ATRALIAN INSTUTE OF HEALTH AND WELFARE STATISTICS SHOW MORE THAN 46,000 ATRALIAN CHILDREN NOW LIVE OUT-OF-HOME RE, WH MORE THAN 40 PER CENT RE FOR AT LEAST FIVE YEARS. KALEB AND AIDAN HAVE SPENT MUCH OF THEIR SHORT LIV FOSTER RE, TOO, BUT, WHEN BOTH AGREED TO BE ADOPTED BY THE UPCROFTS, THE CHANGE WAS MA. BRENDAN UPCROFT SAYS, FOR HIS PARTNER AND HIM, WAS ABOUT GIVG THE BOYS A SENSE OF SECURY. "THE OTHER DRIVER BEHD MOVG TO ADOPTN WAS THE STABILY THAT PROVIS OUR SONS. AIDAN AND KALEB HAVE NOW BEEN FOSTER RE FOR ALMOST NE YEARS. AND WHILST 'S BEEN A VERY STABLE THREE-AND-A-HALF YEARS LIVG WH , ALWAYS HANGG OVER THEIR HEADS IS THE FACT THAT THGS ULD CHANGE, THE AGENCY ULD SUDNLY E AND SAY TO THEM, 'RIGHT, WE NEED TO MOVE YOU TO A DIFFERENT PLACEMENT.'"NOW, THEY HAVE STABILY, AND THEY'LL BE WH THEIR PARENTS NOW FOREVER."BLOGIL PARENTS N STILL PLAY A ROLE CHILDREN'S LIVDPE THE CREASGLY LONG-TERM NATURE OF OUT-OF-HOME RE, FEW LONG-TERM PLACEMENTS LEAD TO ADOPTN.LAST YEAR, JT 315 ADOPTNS WERE FALISED ATRALIA, CLUDG TERNATNAL ADOPTNS, WH ABOUT 45 PER CENT BY KNOWN RERS SUCH AS FOSTER PARENTS OR RELATIV.AMONG LOL ADOPTNS, ABOUT 88 PER CENT ALLOW SOME GREE OF NTACT OR THE EXCHANGE OF RMATN BETWEEN BLOGIL AND ADOPTIVE FAI.BRENDAN UPCROFT SAY ADOPTN HAS GIVEN THE BOYS SECURY. SOURCE: SUPPLIEDTHE UPCROFTS SAY THEY THK IS IMPORTANT THEIR SONS MATA NTACT WH THEIR BIRTH MOTHER."WE HAVE A REALLY FLUID RELATNSHIP WH THEIR BIRTH MUM," BRENDAN UPCROFT SAYS."WE MA A LOT OF MMENTS TO HER OM OUR VERY FIRST MEETG, AND WE'VE WORKED REALLY HARD TO MAKE SURE THAT ALL OF THOSE MMENTS HAVE BEEN MET OR, SOME S, SURPASSED. THE DAYS, 'S LS OF A VISATN SCHLE AND MORE OF JT AN ARRANGEMENT WHEREBY WE TCH UP."THE BIRTH MOTHER RECENTLY SPENT AN ENTIRE DAY WH THE BOYS AND HAS JOED THEM FOR BIRTHDAYS. SHARE4 M READPUBLISHED 23 MARCH 2018 2:21PMUPDATED 26 MARCH 2018 7:38AMBY PEGGY GIAKOUMELOSTAGSSOCIAL ISSUSHARE THIS WH FAY AND IENDSCOPY LKSHAREREMEND FOR YOU

57pmGay upl will be allowed to adopt children Victoria and relig anisatns will fd harr to discrimate agast employe based on their sexualy, unr chang to be ma by Atralia's first mister for after beg sworn as part of the new Andrews ernment, Equaly Mister Mart Foley promised to waste no time amendg state adoptn laws orr brg Victoria to le wh NSW, Wtern Atralia, Tasmania and the ACT.

Tacklg equali: Mart Foley's appotment marks the first time an Atralian ernment has ever had a dited Mister for equaly overseeg lbian, gay, bisexual, transgenr and tersex Chris HopksAt prent, gay upl Victoria n be appoted as foster parents or guardians, but do not have the right to adopt a child together – even if that child has been their re for Foley said Labor would also tackle other equali, cludg the abily of a step-parent to adopt their partner's child and the abily of a gay uple to jotly adopt a child nceived through plans have been broadly weled by the gay muny, although some are ncerned the ernment wants to nduct a review before troduc legislatn to parliament. He admted some had cricised the move – "I've had some highly obnox emails which don't bear to be rpond to" – but said was an important step removg barriers faced by the gay Brown, -nvenor of the Victorian Gay and Lbian Rights Lobby, said: "The Andrews Government has set a new natnal benchmark for rpect of LGBTI muni, and we would enurage the Coaln to match this mment to diversy by appotg a shadow spokperson on the issu.

ATRALIA'S FIRST MISTER FOR EQUALY TO REFORM GAY ADOPTN LAWS

See also J Millbank, ‘Regnn of Lbian and Gay Fai Atralian Law – Part Two: Children’, Feral Law Review, vol 34, no 2, 2006, p206, referencg M Pts et al, ‘Private Liv: A Report on the Health and Wellbeg of GLBTI Atralians’ (2006); Victorian Law Reform Commissn, Assisted Reproductive Technology and Adoptn Posn Paper Two: Parentage, (July 2005), para 3.

VICTORIA LEGALIS ADOPTN RIGHTS FOR GAY UPL

[18] A recent study suggted that among 43 lbians tryg to nceive, only two percent ed terurse: see J Millbank, ‘Regnn of Lbian and Gay Fai Atralian Law – Part Two: Children’, Feral Law Review, vol 34, no 2, 2006, p207, referencg McNair et al, ‘Lbian Parentg: Issu, Strengths and Challeng’ Fay Matters, vol 63, 2002, p40. [24] J Millbank, ‘Regnn of Lbian and Gay Fai Atralian Law – Part Two: Children, Feral Law Review, vol 34, no 2, 2006, p248: In footnote 245, Millbank not that ‘the Northern Terrory troduced a change to refe the child born to one party a facto relatnship as a ‘step-child’ as a prumptive stat the same way that the child of a party to a legal marriage would be: see Interpretatn Act 1978 (NT), s 19A(4).

VICTORIAN BILL BANNG GAY NVERSN THERAPY PASS UPPER HOE AS AMENDMENTS FAIL

Such arguments are not based on a prehensive asssment of the evince for this claim and are ually rmed by relig or iologil beliefs about what nstut a rearch paper scrib the diverse characteristics of same-sex parented fai Atralia, their support needs and experienc, and the challeng they may face given the stigma and discrimatn often attached to homosexualy and enuntered by some same-sex upl.