Gay Adoption In Illinois: Catholic Charities Threatens To Turn Away Gay Couples

One of the largest adoption agencies in Illinois is threatening to turn away couples with civil unions, despite state law demanding they do otherwise.

Catholic Charities has more than 3,000 children in its foster care and adoption agencies, representing around 20 percent of all such services in the state, according to the Chicago Sun-Times. In recompense, the state pays the organization around $30 million a year.

But when the state's new civil unions law goes into effect on June 1, heads of those agencies are saying that they do not plan to serve gay couples in those unions.

"The Catholic Church is not going to be OK with Catholic Charities processing applications from anyone in a civil union," Trish Fox, the head of the Catholic Charities of Peoria, told Chicago Public Radio. "And all we're asking is that we can continue what we've always done, which is refer cohabitating couples, heterosexual or homosexual, to another agency."

The language of the civil unions law, though, is clear on the subject: if an agency receives state dollars, it cannot discriminate against same-sex couples -- that is, it must treat people in civil unions as it would treat married couples.

Anthony Martinez, Executive Director of The Civil Rights Agenda, said in a press release that it's as simple as that.

“If an organization receives state funding, they must serve all residents of that state equally," Martinez said. "I don’t want my tax dollars to fund discrimination in any form, and that is exactly what the Catholic Charities are asking for: the right to discriminate.”

Catholic Charities is hoping for an amendment to the civil unions bill allowing exemptions for faith-based organizations, allowing them to pass adoption applications to gay-friendly organizations without penalty.

"The amendment bill that we're looking for, that would allow us to partner with the state, it would really help us preserve those rights," said Celeste Matheson, Director of Advancement for Catholic Charities, to KWQC.

A state Senate committee recently voted down such an amendment, as HuffPost Chicago reported last month.

If the state stops funding the agency, though, Matheson worries about the fate of the 1,500 children it has currently placed in foster homes around the state. "If we are forced out it is the children that are going to be affected, it's the families that they are currently with, it's going to disrupt their lives," she said.

Who would be to blame for such a crisis, apparently, depends on who you ask.

Comments

[SteveDenver]

03:46 AM on 05/16/2011

Children are in peril from the Catholic Church.

[Chaz Somer]

07:04 PM on 05/13/2011

Gays will throw some of the most vulnerable members of society under the bus just so that they can chalk up another right. Pathetic and disgusting!

[JerseyJ9]

12:42 PM on 05/16/2011

Dont worry, there are plenty of other agencies that will gladly take the gov money and do a better job. It happened in DC without any problems!!

[Doc Kimble]

12:26 PM on 05/11/2011

If a well-meaning naturalist removes a wolf pup from a healthy wolf environment because he wishes to love and care for that pup in a totally different manner than which it was intended by nature, would not that naturalist be considered selfish?

What is objectively true about the wolf pups is also objectively true of human babies. Radical selfishness, no matter how well-meaning and capable, cannot be a substitute for instinctively and naturally superior living and learning environments.

It would be prudent to assist both those who wish to retain healthy, natural environments for wolf pups and those who wish the same for baby humans. Any other assistance by the State or Federal Government is to promote the radical individual above the common good.

[JerseyJ9]

12:44 PM on 05/16/2011

If you want to find the best environment for an individual, then read the studies that prove gays are just as good, if not better, than hereto couples. You should try actually BEING educated before PRETENDING you're educated.

[Doc Kimble]

01:11 PM on 05/16/2011

Man often has fallen prey to self-deception; science, no matter how well intentioned, can be compromised by political bias. Natural law and the laws of nature, however, never change.

I am probably the least well-educated person you'll ever meet. Sometimes, a guy just gets lucky and doesn't have to pretend to be anything other than himself. Open forum, honest opinion. Ain't America great?

[Momtopia]

11:50 AM on 05/08/2011

this is why i stayed home from mass this morning. hypocrisy leaves a bad taste in my mouth. do as we say... not

[KipSteveAdopt]

11:54 PM on 05/07/2011

It will be interesting to see the outcome. As a taxpayer, I think it's unfair for Catholic Charities to receive state funding and to discriminate against couples who can't marry. As a same-sex couple in Illinois who seeks to adopt a second child, we hope the new civil union bill puts a stop to adoption discrimination in our state.

If you or someone you know is making an adoption plan, please consider our family. We hope to adopt a baby of any race or gender. http://www.kipandsteveadopt.com/

[Eric8869]

10:03 PM on 05/07/2011

I don't take my moral compass from an organization that spent decades covering up sexual abuse of minors and wouldn't have even apologized until they were publicly forced to do so.

It's clear they care more about religious dogma than Children. They're disgusting.

[Folklorist]

06:54 PM on 05/07/2011

Freaking awesome!

As a recently-returned resident of the State of Illinois, I am glad to see some really good news indicating that there are lawmakers and policy makers in Illinois who have common sense, a grasp of the importance and inevitability of difference, social conscience, and courage. Good for the state! Get rid of "entitlements" for tax-exempt faith organizations that embed prejudice and discrimination into their missions (and into the minds of their followers). Stop the further insult and the shame that such organizations want to do such contemptuous discrimination with millions of dollars of public money, too.

As for the children being hurt by the change initiated with this new law? An ugly threat by Catholic Charities, yet it is as unsurprising as it is weak. I have no doubt that other nondiscriminating organizations would be quite capable of picking up the slack to the tune of, oh, $30,000,000 or so of forfeited public support.

Make the public good serve the public good for all!

[njtech 2005]

05:10 PM on 05/07/2011

sorry but the only thing i see in that picture is 2 queens and a pawn

[Eric8869]

10:03 PM on 05/07/2011

Then you're a sad person

[David N Taiwan]

08:39 PM on 05/08/2011

Imagine for a second you saw the picture by itself, not associated with this story, no headlines, no description of any kind of what's going on. Perhaps the two adults in the story are fireman who saved the boy from a burning building. Would you still see two queens and a pawn?

The picture is a rorschach test - what you are "seeing" is nothing but what you are projecting onto it from your mind, from your beliefs and opinions.

[longeye67]

12:06 PM on 05/07/2011

Looks like Catholic Charities is in a pickle. The world changes and the church doesn't, they can't. I agree with the church on this one but if they are going to continue the good work they do, it will have to be without state funding unless the law is changed. The gays win and the kids loose. Unintended consequence.

[JerseyJ9]

12:46 PM on 05/16/2011

Actually the kids are losing by still being in the foster care system, 1 in 4 kids in the foster care system end up homeless. Studies prove that gay couples are just as good, if not better than heteros, YOUR ignorance is what's hurting kids.

[mad1026]

11:41 PM on 05/06/2011

Allowing faith-based exemptions sanctions discrimination which would appear to be illegal once the civil-union law goes into effect.

[stayinschool]

10:19 PM on 05/06/2011

Those are a couple of seriously doting parents in that picture.

[Hrair Sarkissian]

08:12 PM on 05/06/2011

f public radio should be funded by the public, a god's church should be funded by... you got it, god!

[Bob Kellerman]

07:34 PM on 05/06/2011

Brazil Approves Same-Sex Civil Unions Despite Catholic Protests
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/05/06/brazil-same-sex-civil-union_n_858515.html

CATHOLIC CHURCH. LDS CHURCH, MANY FUNDAMENTALIST CHURCHES
ARE TRYING TO HOLD BACK THE TIDE
--- they would serve God and the people better by seeing the inevitable, and preparing a way to participate in the 21st Century

DILEMMA -- the old folks give the most money, and want the least change, while the young folks have Facebook, etc, and know what is really going on in the world

THE POPE AND MORMON "PROPHETS" ARE COMPETING FOR THE
----"HOSNE MUBAREK AWARD FOR PLANING AHEAD AND ADAPTING"

[samiles96]

07:23 PM on 05/06/2011

You know what is really funny? Christians point to violent passages in the Koran to prove that Islam is a violent religion. When someone points to violent passages in the Old Testament in respone the Christians will respond that that part of the Bible is mostly irrelevant to Christianity in order to counter that argument. Yet, when quoting Biblical injunctions against homosexuality they use the Old Testament.

[Yeah-Me]

01:43 AM on 05/07/2011

Ironic... Isn't it?

[bearchao]

10:26 AM on 05/07/2011

So right. F&F

[ThoughtThrough]

07:05 PM on 05/06/2011

Give the money to charities who wont teach their foster children to hate