Catholic Charities: Adoption Services 'Imperiled' By Civil Union Legislation

So, yesterday Colorado legislators sent a Civil Union bill to the governor for signature. Nice, yes, but I am not a fan of Civil Unions as they seem very marriage-lite to me, like crumbs from the Straights Only table, meant to placate The Gays so maybe, just maybe, we won’t ask for full equality.

Now, before you all go crazy, I understand that passing a Civil Unions bill can be a step toward full marriage equality, it’s just that it still strikes me as less than: Oh no, we’re not “married,” were “civilly united.”

Doesn’t have the same ring to it, you know? But, this post isn’t about Colorado or Civil Unions or even my personal opinion of either. It’s about those religious adoption agencies—and I’m looking especially at you, Catholic Charities—that began wondering how the new legislation would affect their religious beliefs, and how they might still be able to discriminate against The Gays.

Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Denver expressed “disappointment” in the Colorado Legislature, stating that if signed into law, the bill “may threaten the policies which guide us in the vital work to find families for Colorado’s children in need.”

See, because they might have to allow children to be adopted by gay couples, and we all know The Gays can’t be trusted with children. There’s indoctrination and pedophilia and …. Oh, wait, no, that the Catholic Church and their handling of children.

The new Civil Union does not provide exceptions to religious institutions wishing to withhold adoptions based on sexual orientation, a decision that House Speaker Mark Ferrandino, said would be “discriminatory.” Ferrandino sponsored the bill and is caring for a foster daughter with his longtime partner in hopes of adopting her—one of more than 650 children currently seeking homes in the state’s foster system.

“There are hundreds of LGBT couples who want to raise kids, and these kids who are in the foster system have for some reason been taken away from their biological parents for abuse or neglect. What they need more than anything is a family who loves them and wants to raise them. We should not deny them the opportunity to have two loving parents, be they two women, two men, or a man and a woman.”—Mark Ferrandino

The Reverend Samuel Aqulia, archbishop of Denver, refuted Ferrandino’s stance on religious exemptions, adding that while the Catholic Church “recognizes and affirms the dignity of every human person,” it does not view all relationships as equal.

Which, um, forgive me if I’m wrong, Padre, means you don’t believe in the dignity of every person, I mean, if that person is gay.

“The ability for religious-based institutions to provide foster care and adoption services for Colorado’s children is now dangerously imperiled. Marriage is a stabilizing institution at the foundation of civil society. Religious liberty is a civil rights issue. Both have been grievously harmed.”—The Reverend Samuel Aqulia

How, exactly, is it imperiled? How is keeping children in orphanages and foster care facilities better than allowing them to be adopted by loving couples in a committed relationship who choose to raise, nurture, educate and love a child? How is a gay couple’s parenting style, and skills, any less than those of a heterosexual couple?

::::crickets::::::

Catholic Charities spokeswoman Tracy Murphy has said the group will not announce any concrete decision regarding adoption services in Colorado until the civil unions bill is signed into law, but the group previously threatened to withdraw adoption services to anyone, anyone, in Colorado if the legislation did not include religious exemptions that would allow them to withhold adoptions from gay couples.

Better to punish children, I’m guessing, than to allow a gay couple the joy of parenting. But then that’s what the Catholic Church does; it punishes children by keeping them in foster care, in orphanages, when they are parents willing to take them in; it punishes children by allowing them to be raped and molested by priests who then get passed around and paid off and protected, all the whole a Pope—even new Pope Franky—wears Prada and jewels and sits on a golden throne.

How does that serve children?

Again ….

::::crickets::::

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This Time It's Real: The GOP Kills Civil Unions In Colorado

Mark Ferrandino, Democrat for Equality

They went to the edge and then they pulled back.

Then, they went back to the edge, and pulled back again.

Now, they've killed any chance of Civil Unions legislation in Colorado this year.

The effing GOP. So, so behind the times, So, so out of touch. So, so in the Dark Ages.

Vote 'em out. Vote 'em all out.

John Hickenlooper,
Democrat for Equality

A last-ditch effort by Democratic Governor, John Hickenlooper, to grant same-sex Colorado couples the same, or, at least similar, rights as those granted opposite sex couples, has failed at the hands of the republican party.

The death of Civil Unions legislation will now be used by the Democrats in the upcoming elections to try and run the GOP out of office for their avid stance against equality for gay couples, because that's what it is, anti-equality.

See, when the bill seemed doomed, the governor demanded that a vote be taken on it--and it was believed that it would pass--but the GOP-controlled statehouse--led by Republican Frank McNulty--sent the bill to the House State, Veterans and Military Affairs Committee, which voted 5-4 along party lines to kill the measure.

And the GOP knew this would happen and that's why they did it.

Representative Mark Ferrandino, Democratic leader in the House and the openly gay lawmaker who co-sponsored the bill, is not done, yet: "If it fails this year, we're going to work hard to make sure the public understands what happened, the games that were played, and next we're going to push it again. And as I've said a number of times, it's not a matter of 'if,' it's a matter of 'when.' And the 'when' keeps getting sooner and sooner. This will happen."

And it will, and the GOP will be left, on the sidelines, with egg on their faces, for denying equality.

Denying equality. That's the GOP.

Frank McNulty,
Republican for Discrimination

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Colorado Civil Union Bill Inches Closer To Vote

Colorado has always seemed right on the precipice of enacting pro-LGBT legislation, and then they pull back, out of fear, or out of loathing. And the same holds true today.

A bill to allow civil unions for gay couples in Colorado needs to survive two more votes in the GOP-led House before it gets to the governor’s desk, but it appears closer than in any other year to becoming law.

Teetering on said precipice.

If the legislation passes, Colorado would join more than a dozen states that allow gay marriage or civil unions. Hawaii and Delaware began allowing civil unions earlier this year.

Of course, Civil Unions, like Domestic Partnerships, are really just Marriage-lite. While they allow lesbian and gay couple some rights that are similar to marriage, they aren't full marriage equality. But, this is a big step for gun-shy Colorado.

So far Colorado Democrats have been able to advance the bill past two GOP-led House committees, with the Finance Committee approving the measure last Friday with a 7-6 vote; it passed the House Judiciary Committee last Thursday.

Republican Representative  Don Beezley, the only Republican to support the measure on the finance panel, said, “For me, it really came down to that basic issue of fairness and doing the right thing.”

The right thing.

The bill now goes before the Appropriations Committee where the Democrats, of course, fully support its passage; but they'll need at least one Republican to vote yes for it to go to the full House. And that lone Republican just might be Representative Cheri Gerou who has previously said she supports a Civil Unions bill.

And while Republicans have a 33-32 vote advantage in the House, given the committee votes, where Republicans joined Democrats, the bill could have enough support for passage.

Mark Ferrandino, a Democrat and gay lawmaker, who sponsored the bill, says, “I’m very excited. We're one step closer today than we were yesterday, and yesterday we were one step closer than we’ve ever been.”

The Colorado Senate has already approved the bill, and, if the house passes it, it could reach the desk of Governor John Hickenlooper by Wednesday; Hickenlooper says he fully supports the bill.

Right on the precipice.

Hopefully, this time, Colorado will take that leap toward equality.

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