Families of all types must be accepted

A Sept. 25 letter, “What seems normal ignores reality,” implies that same-sex couples will never be equal to heterosexual couples in terms of having a family. I was surprised by this letter, seeing as though we live in a community with numerous organizations such as Gay Straight Alliance, formed to educate the public on this issue.

The National Council on Family Relations states, “Research on gender identity has failed to reveal any differences in the development of children in regards to their parents’ sexual orientation.” In fact, studies found that children who were born or adopted in the context of heterosexual marriages that later ended when one or both came out as gay or lesbian experienced more stress than children whose parents had acknowledged themselves as gay or lesbian.

It is important to recognize that not all families are alike. Groups and organizations should be created to support same-sex parenting in our community. Gay parenting has been a controversial issue for decades, and it is our job to accept every family, regardless of their sexual orientation.

Ashley McGill

Arlington Heights