Aiming to ensure LGBTQ parents are afforded the same rights as heterosexual couples, Assemblywomen Annette Quijano and Carol Murphy released the following statement on their measure (AR-146) to urge the federal government to recognize children born abroad to American LGBTQ parents as U.S. citizens, which was approved Thursday by the Assembly Human Services Committee:
“For several years under multiple presidents, LGBTQ parents who have children abroad through surrogacy, artificial insemination or other methods have struggled to have their children recognized as U.S. citizens,” said Quijano (D-Union). “The U.S. Department of State has followed an outdated interpretation of a law requiring a biological tie between a U.S. parent and their child in order for citizenship to be passed down. It’s unbelievable to think that in this day and age LGBTQ parents don’t have the same rights as heterosexual parents. It’s time for the federal government to modernize its notion of parenthood.”
“No American parent should need to worry about obtaining citizenship for their child, no matter who they love or how they choose to start their family,” said Murphy (D-Burlington). “There’s so much more to being a parent beyond DNA. But same-sex couples who use reproductive technology to have a child with a non-American individual find themselves fighting to have their baby rightfully granted U.S. citizenship. By calling upon the Department of State to reverse this practice, we take an important step in ensuring equality for all parents.”