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Email: "Two Lesbians Listed as “Parents” in UK Birth Certificate First"

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BY LifeSiteNews.com By Hilary WhiteBRIGHTON, April 20, 2010 (LifeSiteNews.com) – Two lesbians have become the first in the U.K. to be allowed to enter their names as “parents” on the birth certificate of a child they obtained through in vitro fertilization, under the provisions of the Labour government’s Human Fertilization and Embryology Act 2008. Lily-May Betty Woods was born in Brighton to 38 year-old Natalie Woods, whose name was entered on the birth certificate along with that of her “partner,” 47-year-old Betty Knowles. They did not name the father of the child, whom they referred to merely as the “donor.”The new law allows birth certificates to list only the “mother and parent.” Since they were instituted 170 years ago, birth certificates have always listed both biological parents, if known. Woods told media, “It is fantastic, quite a milestone. Compared to having to go through the courts this is really straightforward and the way it should be. We started forward on this journey together so it is fitting that we can both sign the register. “It’s also good that we don’t have any of the worries and concerns of me being the only legal parent. The fact that same-sex parents can both be on the birth certificate shows our kind of family is becoming more acceptable.”Since 2005, same-sex partnerships in Britain may be registered with the government, a recognition that provides most of the legal rights of marriage. In 2006 the High Court rejected a legal bid for recognition of “marriage” by two British lesbians who had “married” in Canada.Josephine Quintavalle, from Comment on Reproductive Ethics (CORE), said, “Birth certificates should reflect how a baby is generated. In a culture that is obsessed with genetics, it is strange that when it comes to birth certificates we are prepared to forget all that. “As much as you try to play around with the terminology, the biology reflects what has happened and one day the child will ask about their father.”The two women, however, have dismissed concerns about the child’s need for a father, saying it is “unconditional love” that is important in a child’s upbringing. They were not told the names of the male donors, but were given medical histories. Lily-May can request to know her father’s identity when she turns 18. The two said they intend to have another child and have agreed that as Lily-May grows up she will call Woods “Mummy,” while Miss Knowles will be “Mama B.” Woods is a therapist with a homosexual counseling service while Knowles is a delivery driver. Research has shown that the child’s need for two parents, a mother and a father, is deeply seated and the lack of such can cause problems throughout life. A report by a pro-family group in Spain, released in 2005, titled, “Report on Infantile Development in Same-Sex Couples,” examined findings from multiple international studies. It concluded that homosexual parenting increases risk for children of low self-esteem, stress, confusion regarding sexual identity, mental illness, drug use, and promiscuity. It warned that the notorious instability of same-sex relationships also has an impact on children being raised in such environments. The push to de-recognize fatherhood by homosexualist activists is one that has met with limited success around the world. France continues to categorically reject efforts to abolish natural biological relations on birth certificates, while several jurisdictions in Canada have adopted the British practice. The District of Columbia recently allowed two persons of the same sex to be listed on birth certificates. Laws recognizing same sex “parents” have also been enacted in Israel and Spain. Read related LSN coverage:Two Lesbians to be named as “Mothers” on Birth Certificates under UK Human Tissue and Embryo Billhttp://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2007/nov/07110601.html http://www.lifesitenews.com/news/two-lesbians-listed-as-parents-in-uk-birth-certificate-first/

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