Panel Discusses Same-Sex Adoption Rights in the District
June 15, 2021
On June 11 D.C. Attorney General Karl A. Racine continued his “Take 30” series with a conversation with D.C. Chief Deputy Attorney General Jason Downs, D.C. Deputy Attorney General Chad Copeland, and family law attorney Michele Zavos about same-sex adoption, a timely issue considering that the U.S. Supreme Court is poised to rule on Fulton v. City of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, a case involving discrimination against LGBTQ couples by faith-based foster care agencies.
At the outset, Downs expressed the District’s commitment to the rights of same-sex couples, saying the city “has one of the strongest civil rights laws in the country.” The D.C. Human Rights Act “prohibits discrimination based on gender identity or sexual orientation, as well as 19 other traits, in the context of housing, employment, public accommodations, and educational institutions. It also applies, importantly, to those seeking to adopt children,” Downs said.
In 2018 the District joined several states in an amicus brief supporting Philadelphia’s decision not to refer foster care cases to agencies that reject same-sex couples on religious grounds.
Zavos, who represents LGBTQ individuals in family court, provided an overview of adoption policy changes over the past several decades. Where neither parent is genetically tied to the adopted child, barriers once existed for same-sex couples. Adoption was typically limited to married couples, and the prior inability to marry prevented same-sex couples from meeting adoption criteria.
In the 1990s, Zavos said the District saw a shift from the presumption that only heterosexual couples can adopt to the more inclusive concept where, for example, a non-birth mother in a lesbian relationship can acquire parental rights, or where a gay couple can parent a child together through surrogacy or adoption.
In 2015 the Supreme Court legalized same-sex marriage in its landmark decision in Obergefell v. Hodges, but, according to Zavos, groups claiming religious exemption are circumventing it by refusing to certify couples for adoption. Current statistics show that 21 percent of same-sex couples in the United States have adopted children, a rate seven times that of straight couples.
The speakers brought not only their professional experience to Friday’s conversation but also their personal stories on adoption. Copeland adopted two foster children with his husband, and Copeland himself was adopted. Despite some concern about how they would be received, Copeland said he and his husband navigated the adoption qualification process without experiencing discrimination. “It’s a tough process, but I think it’s tough for the right reasons,” he said.
Zavos noted that Copeland’s story illustrates the progress the District has made over the years. In the early days, adoption officers’ prejudices often perpetuated discrimination against same-sex couples despite changes in the law. Trainings conducted by Zavos and others have helped change the perceptions and actions of social workers.
“When I have clients that want to adopt through D.C. foster care, I say you have to have a strong heart, a strong stomach, and a strong mind,” Zavos said.
Copeland said that on the day of their second adoption, one of the other couples completing the process had relocated to the District from Alabama, where they had been prevented from adopting on account of their homosexuality.
Copeland has represented the District’s Child and Family Services Agency and has adopted through it as well. He says the agency puts a lot of energy into ensuring that discrimination doesn’t occur and that children are placed in supportive homes. This is particularly important because some of the children, particularly those in their early teens, are themselves LGBTQ, he said.
Copeland’s advice to those considering adopting a child? “Do it.” Foster care adoption “is a hard process, but it is an important process, and in the District, there are a lot of kids, especially older kids, who need homes,” Copeland said.
He encouraged those interested to adopt to call 202-671-LOVE and talk to someone about how to become a foster parent. “It’s been great to build our family, and it’s really worth it,” he said.
