Utah Governor honored by GLBT organizations
Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. was honored by Utah’s GLBT community at this year’s pride festival.
The Utah Pride Center and other organizations have picked Huntsman for the Pete Suazo Political Action Award.
Huntsman is the first Utah governor to openly support civil unions for same-sex couples.
Earlier this year, he also endorsed the Common Ground Initiative, a campaign for basic legal protections for gay and transgender Utahns that fizzled in the Legislature.
The award is named for the late state Sen. Pete Suazo, who worked for years to pass hate-crimes legislation in Utah.
9/29/2007
A Utah gay couple may lose their kids because of their successful relationship. State wants single closeted gay men as parents
Three weeks ago, in Utah County, a niece asked her uncle to take her 4 kids. To care for them because she can’t. She’s dealing with drug-related criminal matters – and the kids are aged 11, 6, 2-years, and 10 months. The father’s not able to care for them either.
The uncle happens to be gay, and in a long term relationship. Michael Valdez and Michael Oberg have been together for about 5 years. They have steady jobs, a nice home, and no criminal record – but they aren’t allowed by law to take-in the needy kids.
Utah says that to adopt or be a foster parent, you must be legally married – or single – and not cohabiting. It doesn’t license foster couples who aren’t legally married. In other words, gay Uncle Valdez could foster or adopt if he wasn’t in a steady, thriving relationship. If he was “single”.
Officials asked the court to take custody of the kids or grant custody to the state’s Division of Child and Family Services. The Daily Herald reports that, on Friday, the courts took custody, then granted Valdez temporary custody of the children.
The judge said, “I see absolutely no reason why the kids can’t stay where they’re at.”
The 11-year-old child said, “I would rather live with my mom. But if I can’t, I’d rather live here.”
Michael is already a father. Gabrielle Valdez, his 17-year-old biological daughter, said that their home is like any other, complete with family dinners, concerns over school work and regular jobs.
Utah joins Florida and Mississippi with outright bans on gay parents.
According to KSL.com and Utah’s Division of Child and Family Services, there are 2,600 children in the state’s foster program.
I have a brother that is “gay”, I love him & pray for him daily. I do not believe that gay or lesbian couples should be allowed to raise children. I believe that, thatthe chosen lifestyle without saying sets the childs mind to accept this to be normal. I’m not saying that the couple is not good, kind or responsible. The child would be raised to believe that this is acceptable. God set forth in his word, “He created man & gave him a help mate (woman)”. He told them to be fruitful & mulitiply.Two men or two woman can not do this. the only way homosexuals can mulitiply is to convert other people to their belief. I believe if people chose to live this life style they should keep that influence within the relm of that people believe the same way. All I can say is pray for homosexuals, pray in love, God loves them too!
…this is sad. The kids deserve to be with family members who love them. They need to stay with people they know and trust. The judge is right in his decision.
Do you remember the day you decided you were straight? You call this a “chosen lifestyle”, so I assume you had the luxury of choosing to be heterosexual. In other words, you could be gay — if you wanted.
Lesbians and gays are being fruitful – and we’re multiplying. The popularity of this website is an indication that there will be generations of children raised by gay and lesbian parents. No conversions necessary – just healthy family values like meals around the kitchen table, birthday parties, and family vacations.
Feel free to pray for me though. My days are long and often stressful. I’ll take all the love I can get.
Good luck with your journey.
The whole, “I love you… I’m going to pray for you…” is tired. Get a new script. Don’t pray for us. Don’t even think about us. Go about your life as if we don’t overlap with you, because we don’t. My thriving – loving – home doesn’t have anything to do with yours. I assume your home is brimming with love since you have so much to give away. We definitely don’t need any of your antagonism disguised as pity.
“Love, youngsplace”? Come on!
…I’m a pinhead. Sorry! Disregard my retarded opinion–the one where I say children should be taken away from family and given to the foster care system so that gays won’t be raising them.
I mean, sometimes someone as stupid as me decides to give an opinion. Boy, oh, boy, was that a mistake! I’m just a head up my ass numbnuts.
Love, youngsplace
Hi. My name is April. I was raised up by my uncle and aunt instead of my parents.The family that my sister and I grew up in was not the very best. I have a sister who is a lesbian and she has a “partner”. If these two were to ever have a chance to have a child together I think it would be the most awesome thing in the world!! I don’t think one’s sexuality has anything to do with how they raise a child or children. What they do behind their closed bedroom doors is there business not mine or yours or anyone else’s. Those of you who cannot stand the fact that lesbians and gays are who they are are nothing more than hypocritcal idiots. In the bible it teaches us not to judge as we will be judged for our own actions when our time comes. I think that it is fantastic that they can be parents. Take me for instance, I cannot have children. My husband and I have been married 10 years and would love to have a few little ones runnig around. My sister and sister in law have 3 that my sister gave up in her younger days. I think as long as you can offer a child love, friendship, kindness, food, shelter, clothing, and all their basic needs and wants then you are fit to raise a child no matter what your sexuality is. I am a Christian myself and i don’t see a thing wrong with one having a different sexuality as me. GOD is the only one that can judge me and you not some other person. So I say, gays and lesbians I am 110% percent for you being able to have children however you can get them. April
I think that you are right in every aspect. email me at any time mississppi_rose78@yahoo.com
If you can’t accept the responsibility that comes with having a child, why are you having them?
If you keep insisting that people like myself are freaks, and unfit, come January, I’m halving my Gay White tax dollars!
Very well put.The time will come when the partners assume right to teach children not to judge as we are so often.A proven fact,gay couples MUST excell ,just as women
Pull your head out of the sand and take a look at what is going on.
What would you rather the children accept as normal?
Should they accept that being gay is normal? (and it is – gay people exist in every country, every culture, and every ethnic division on the planet, at a rate of about 10% of the population.)
Or perhaps you would rather them grow up to accept that substance abuse and trouble with the law is the way to go.
Safe to say I wouldn’t be leaving the futures of my children to you and your 2000 year old book.
I work for the Division of Child and Family Services. I see a terrible need for loving foster families.
Nothing accepted in the intelligent, informed community demonstrates that gay couples would be inappropriate to care for children, in fact research shows they have many strengths most hetersexual couples do not have.
The bible teaches so many false and contradictory things that it is ridiculous to base policy and law on what a confused ancient (and mostly false) book says.
God can mind his own business and intelligent people should be making decisions on how to care for the children who need a home in our state.
Pray for yourselves, the gay people in our state don’t need your hypocritical pleas.
This is reduculous!! States like Utah, Flordia and Mississippi would rather keep children in foster care than give them the families that they so desire. Yet, they talk about how many kids there are in foster care and how they need a family. If more states would allow gay couples to adopt we could reduce the number of children wanting families by 50 – 60%. I applaud these guys for wanting and fighting for the right to care for these children
Why would gay or lesbian couples not be allowed to raise children, thier just as intelligent and loving as a straight couple. Its people like you who hold the world back, who think that what thier parents taught them and what they’ve “been raised to believe” is automatically true. Also by the way, not all peoples follow the teachings of the bible. Another thing is the science behind it, Many gays are born the way they are, with a different hormone balance then the average person. So to talk about “converting” others to thier belief is just stupid.
I wonder how many Christian parents who claim that the bible is their source for family values have beaten or killed their children for talking back to them like it tells them to. One could also offer their child as a sacrifice and find that justified in the bible. Ancient literature and superstition is a poor basis for family values. We have to teach our children how to live in this society, not the society of ancient nomadic desert tribes.
Gay parents are parents because they want to be. They are not squirting out babies every nine months without thought of how to support them. It is a well thought out decision. The time and effort that is expended ensures that these children are loved and cared for.
First of all,I believe that all people have the right to choose who they fall in love with. I am a gay man living in Utah and it is hard to live around such closed minded people. As is says above 2,600 kids who are sitting in a foster home with no parents and nobody to care for them. Why would it even matter if 2 homosexuals wanted to adopt them. We are just as capable of being loving parents as heterosexuals. It is amazing to me how you people (youngsplace) have no clue what the world is really like. When these kids turn 18 they are kicked out of foster care and expected to start there life. A good portion of them get into drugs, have low self esteem, and have never felt what a loving family is like. Shame on you! This country needs to change. What is your fear? That the whole world will turn Homosexual? I think it is you that needs to pray for yourself for thinking in such a closed minded way.
I totally understand where you are coming from, I mean, straight people can only raise straight kids and for all kids to grow up straight no gay parents are allowed.
My hubby’s relatives are gay and they helped to raise his kids before I came along. Now, they are human just like the rest of us and capable of love. No prob there. But when it came to them getting married we did not let our kids go to it, because even though it is right for them (in their minds), that is not how we want to raise our family, that gay marriage it OK. We are completely against it, but support our family in their decisions, and love them no less.
It is not a choice, you should do more research
Talk about some high forms of hypocrites there are. I mean WoW… It’s ok for them, but We are against it for everyone else. Oh Forbid the children actually learn to tolerant or even make an informed choice without having generations of hate and what was that word called…. Umm Wasn’t it the same type of thinking Hitler used? Just not as extreme.
I got a Good one. “God made us (humans) in his image. God is all loving and forgiving.” Oh Wait a minute… If he is all that, then what… does it say about someone who goes out of their way to prove a point and teach someone to judge them braised on choices they made in their private life. What does it say about ya if ya turn around and go Out of ya way to interfere with someone’s personal and very special event, attempting to ruin it for everyone of that type, or acting like god himself and pretends to know what’s allowed and not. No, nothing wrong with that.. *gag*
What’s funny On the overall, a gay couple who love each other and manage to make it is amazing because it’s a feat for anyone, and even more so, when they are in touch with love in it self (which anyone can do) they are closer to god. To think that your attacking Love (whether it be between 2 males or 2 females) Is amazing because, Your attacking the gift given to everyone by //God// to share how they feel is right.
What god would approve of anyone going out attack someone’s way of life?