To the editor:

I’ve realized those opposing gay adoption have little evidence concerning the negative effects it may have on a child, and I believe that much of the debate is political rather than focusing on what it should. Research caused me to look further into my own beliefs and make room for new ideas for the sake of morality, while surfacing the need I saw to refocus the attention on the children.

Adoption is about improving the lives of children by providing safe living environments for those left parentless. The number of abandoned kids in the world far outnumbers the amount of homes open to them. Kristen Kreisher of the Child Welfare League of America says that in 1999 it was estimated that 127,000 children were without a family. She found “children of homosexual parents show no difference in levels of self-esteem, anxiety, depression, behavior problems, or social performance.” These children need safe homes, and it is apparent that the sex of the parent is irrelevant.

Much of the opposition to gay adoption stems from the church. A practicing Christian, I realize that two ideas can coexist and still provide for an overall good. Despite the morality of homosexuality, it is fact that there are children in need of homes. Given little rights, homosexuals won’t be as picky in the decision of the child they adopt. The legalization of gay adoption in all states would supply more open homes to help decrease the number of children in orphanages, and other non-ideal situations.

Meghan Crylen,

Lawrence