The case that I found most disturbing was this gay nurse who was given his child by a patient who was a chronic drug user. The patient was informed that he was gay, and the grandparents agree that the gay man is an amazing caretaker. The child refers to him as "dad." However, he is not allowed to adopt him because Florida law prevents him from doing so. He went to court for a hearing, and was denied his day in court. In the meantime, this child is amazingly bright and kind, and sensitive not only to his issues as a child of a gay parent, but as a black child of a white single father. It turns out that this is a big thing: gay couples adopt large numbers of African-American children, who are traditionally underserved by the U.S. adoption system. Doesn't it do more harm to leave these kids in the system?
Here is the national system on state courts on the difference between adoption and legal guardianship:
Quote:
Probate, or legal guardianship, is a lawfully binding, supervisory relationship between an adult and child who may or may not be related. Every state permits the transfer of guardianship authority from a parent to another adult, but the type of legal guardianship discussed here focuses on children who have been taken away from their parents and are in foster care. Authority may or may not have been voluntarily transferred, but at the time of the guardianship, returning home is not an option. In most cases, the parental rights of the biological parent have not been terminated, and when capable, the biological parents maintain financial responsibility for the child. This is different from adoption, where parental rights are permanently ended, and the legal relationship between adoptive parent and child is permanent and exactly the same as with the birth family. A guardian is responsible for all decisions regarding the child’s well-being, including medical treatment, education, and visitations with parents.
This means that the gay parent, although emotionally connected and morally responsible enough to act as a parent still stands below the birth parent as far as rights are concerned.