...and policies that prohibit discrimination charged against LGBT individuals in the adoption process (Lifelong Adoptions, 2013). New Jersey state law also bans discrimination against LGBT individuals in the foster parent process (Lifelong Adoptions, 2013). New Jersey Statutes Annotated 9:3-43 enables for any person to adopt permitted the said person(s) pass a background investigation and meet adoption criteria for eligibility (Onelce, 2012). Unmarried joint adoptive parents petitioning to adopt a child can do so because of N.J.S.A. 9:3-43 (Onelce, 2012). In “Re-adoption of Two Children” by H.N.R., 666 A.2d 535 (Onelce, 2012) addresses second parent adoption; this statute exercises the possibility for an individual to petition for shared rights of custody with a parent who already possesses legal parental custody of a child. Several states prohibit joint adoption due to unmarried status. This statute is favorable for unmarried parents seeking to adopt in New Jersey. This New Jersey statute provides for an overall tolerant atmosphere for LGBT individuals and couples looking to adopt or become foster parents. In summary, laws and policies regarding same-sex adoption vary from state to state. Forms of Adoption The three common forms of adoptive guardianship are individual (single) parent adoption, joint adoption, and second parent adoption (Adoption, foster care agencies and state law, n.d.). The most traditional type of adoptive parents is the single parent adoption. This is where...
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...ayGay Liberation & the African American Civil Rights Movement: Exploring the Connections Kelly Arruda Equality is a good start, but it is not sufficient. Equality for queers inevitably means equal rights on straight terms, since they are the ones who determine the existing legal framework. We conform— albeit equally—with their screwedup system. That is not liberation. It is capitulation. —Peter Thatchell Recent developments in samesex marriage have raised emotions, awareness and many questions about equality and rights as well as inquires about the benefits of marriage for society in general. Is the goal to blend into an existing system of rights and privileges or to work toward a new framework of acceptance? To examine these questions, I invite you to take a journey through the past sixty years and visit moments of both the African American and Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgender (GLBT) Civil Rights Movements. By examining the African American Civil Rights Movement, I attempt to survey and assess the advantages and disadvantages of both the assimilationist and liberationist perspectives of the GLBT Movement. Historical Context The racist institution of Jim Crow grew out of the Emancipation Proclamation of 1863 which abolished slavery in the United States. Long after slavery was abolished, however, African Americans continued to suffer cruel injustices throughout the country. The discriminatory system of Jim Crow perpetually ...
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...Gay rights is itself an important public policy issue, with strong elements of civil rights and equality. However, the political mobilization of the gay community has also raised a number of more immediate policy issues. Some of those have affected only the homosexual community, but others have had wider relevance such as AIDS research and treatment. As we noted earlier, the style of political activism invoked on gay rights issues has been less that of interest groups and more that of a movement. Still, as that movement has become institutionalized, so too have the forms of interaction between it and government. One of the most important political milestones in that interaction occurred during the Clinton administration with respect to military service. During his first presidential campaign, Bill Clinton had advocated greater rights for the gay community and had received overwhelming support from those voters. One issue that his gay supporters wanted addressed was elimination of the prohibition against homosexuals serving in the military. Once elected, President Clinton encountered substantial resistance from the military to any change in the existing policy. military leaders defended their traditional stance of excluding homosexuals by arguing that permitting homosexuals to serve alongside heterosexual soldiers would be detrimental to morale. The solution that the Clinton administration developed was labeled "don't ask, don't tell", meaning that there would be no efforts...
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...Journal of Gay & Lesbian Social Services, 22:165–182, 2010 Copyright © Taylor & Francis Group, LLC ISSN: 1053-8720 print / 1540-4056 online DOI: 10.1080/10538720903332578 Advocacy Coalitions and Punctuated Equilibrium in the Same-Sex Marriage Debate: Learning from Pro-LGBT Policy Changes in Minneapolis and Minnesota LAKE DZIENGEL St. Cloud State University, St. Cloud, Minnesota Policy change to actualize same-sex marriage requires planning and practices that can be most effective to advance marriage equality. This case study examines how building and maintaining strong coalitions aided in attainment and preservation of civil rights and protections for same-sex couples in Minnesota. As a historical policy analysis, it dissects collaborative strategies and events that led to a municipal domestic partner ordinance and state civil rights protections for sexual minorities in Minnesota during 1983–1995. Viewed through the lens of Advocacy Coalition Framework and Punctuated Equilibrium theory, findings support and highlight the importance of strategic planning of developing capable leaders, building strong coalitions, and capitalizing on events to garner public support and advance public policy toward civil rights protections and legal recognition for same-sex couples. KEYWORDS advocacy coalitions, punctuated equilibrium, policy, lesbian, gay, domestic partner benefits INTRODUCTION The city of Minneapolis, Minnesota, a large urban community, passed a Domestic Partner Ordinance...
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...In a country with its fundamentals based on liberty and equality, America always has struggled with those very concepts. Throughout history, Americans have been challenged to make decisions that have oppressed and freed certain groups of people. The political fight for same-sex marriages is a perfect example of this notion. This relation between spouses has created a major controversy that is creating history in our nation. A series of protests, acts and political scandal has opened America to discuss a topic that had been in “the closet” for a long time. This discussion asks questions that have caused a visceral reaction in society. Same sex marriage opens the door to a new unnatural purpose that could detrimentally influence the fragile generations to come. Tradition is a strong component in the institution of marriage. The ideal American dream usually involves the perfect fairy-tale wedding with the gorgeous white wedding dress for the bride, the matching bridesmaids, the well-arranged bouquet and, the numerous rituals that compose this well thought-out event. Usually it requires a spectacular amount of planning, devotion and dollars to make the important day memorable. Family and friends come together to rejoice in the vows that will bond the two lovers into a lifetime journey of love, commitment and fidelity. Both persons in the relation is expected to have a role in this institution. According to Judith Wallerstein and Sandra Blakeslee, “In the idealized form of the...
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...any middle ground with this debate, one is either in support of this issue of gay marriage, or one is opposed to it. Whatever your feelings are regarding this issue, there is no denying that gay marriage will be an issue for debate for a very long time. While religion may say it is wrong many people believe gay and lesbian couples deserve the same rights as straight couples and do not deserve to be treated differently. Webster’s dictionary defines marriage as n., (1) the state of being united to a person of the opposite sex as husband or wife in a consensual or contractual relationship recognized by law,(2) the state of being united to a person of the same sex in a relationship like that of a traditional marriage <same-sex marriage>. This change in definition was made in 2003. Marriage should be about getting married to that special someone that you love, it is not just a piece of paper that ties us together. It also involves legal, economic and social aspects as well. Civil unions and domestic partnerships are discussed every day in society, but neither is the same as a “legal” marriage, and are not afforded the same rights as straight married couples. Health insurance is difficult enough for married couples without the challenge being faced by same sex couples. Every state, as well as every insurance company has a different set of policies, rules, options and benefits. Now a new batch of standards is arising as the Affordable Care Act begins to take effect. In California...
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...A fraternity (Latin frater : "brother") is a brotherhood, although the term sometimes connotes a distinct or formal organization and sometimes a secret society. A fraternity (or fraternal organization) is an organized society of men associated together in an environment of companionship and brotherhood; dedicated to the intellectual, physical, and social development of its members. History There are known fraternal organizations which existed as far back as ancient Greece and in the Mithraic Mysteries of ancient Rome. Analogous institutions developed in the late medieval period called confraternities, which were lay organizations allied to the Catholic Church. Some were groups of men and women who were endeavoring to ally themselves more closely with the prayer and activity of the Church; Others were groups of tradesmen, which are more commonly referred to as guilds. These later confraternities evolved into purely secular fraternal societies, while the ones with religious goals continue to be the format of the modern Third Orders affiliated with the mendicant orders. The development of modern fraternal orders was especially dynamic in the United States, where the freedom to associate outside governmental regulation is expressly sanctioned in law. There have been hundreds of fraternal organizations in the United States, and at the beginning of the 20th century the number of memberships equaled the number of adult males. (Due to multiple memberships, probably only 50% of adult...
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...People with disabilities represent a significant minority population in the United States; however, they are relatively underrepresented in the American workforce, in spite of the passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act in 1990. Many experts agree that the continuing unemployment of people with disabilities is due in large part to the fact that potential employers and co-workers still maintain negative attitudes toward them as a group. These negative attitudes appear to be rooted in a lack of knowledge about people with disabilities, as well as the perpetuation of erroneous stereotypes about them. Some scholars and advocates (e.g., Lee and Rodda, 1994; Unger, 2002) assert that training designed to challenge existing beliefs is the key to changing these negative attitudes. Our research sought to test that assertion by determining the effects of a brief educational intervention on individuals' knowledge about and attitudes toward people with disabilities in the workplace. Using a Solomon four-group quasi-experimental design, undergraduate students were placed into one of four conditions and completed a survey that included a knowledge assessment and the Attitude Toward Disabled Persons Scale (Yuker and Block, 1986). Results indicate that the educational intervention had a significant impact on both participants' knowledge levels and their attitudes, even after controlling for gender and prior experience with people with disabilities. Implications of the findings are discussed...
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...particularly in granting homosexual couples a right to marry. The pros and the cons throw out a ton of arguments supporting their position. This issue, whether or not the same-sex marriage should be allowed, is extremely controversial and the debates never end. In this paper, I take the pro side by providing strong both qualitative and quantitative data, how the homosexual marriage can benefit society, how far they have fought for their rights, etc. Marriage is commonly construed as a legal relationship between a man and a woman or between a husband and a wife to build a new family. According to Webster’s New Collegiate Dictionary, a family is “the basic unit in society having as its nucleus two or more adults living together and cooperating in the care and rearing of their own or adopted children.” In spite of this neutral definition of family, it is called neutral because the dictionary never mentions the gender of the adults; many people in our society do not picture lesbian or gay couple when they think about a family. In America, gay or lesbian couples cannot just legally marry as normal couples do in any state, except in Massachusetts; where same-sex marriage is allowed. Same-sex couples have to be ready to receive all the negative consequences because they cannot legally marry; for example, higher estate tax and insurance, difficulties in making end-of-life health care decisions for their partners, etc. But, they still have the right to create their own ‘legal’ relationship...
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...Declaration of Independence, which proclaims that "all men are created equal" and that they are "endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable Rights" including "Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness”. Yet, it is still legal in 29 states to be fired for just being gay. In 33 of the 50 states of the United States of America, one can be fired for being transgendered. These states do not have legal protections for members of the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) Community (Solmonese, 2009). So does the “American Dream” only apply to “first class citizens”? This paper explores if the Employee Non Discrimination Act (ENDA) would protect employment decisions, which should be based upon a person's qualifications and job performance, not sexual orientation or gender identity (Solmonese, 2009). For over 50 years when there has been a case of an American being denied employment or promotions for reasons that were unrelated to their skills in the workplace, Congress responded by passing laws which were aimed at designing a system based solely on employee- merit and guaranteeing that subjective considerations do not govern access to employment (Herman, 2009). A specific act that has been brought to legislation, although has not passed, is the Employee Non Discrimination Act. ENDA is modeled after Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which forbids employers from discriminating with regard to hiring, termination,...
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...often denied the ability to foster or adopt children, and do not receive equal rights when compared with heterosexual married couples. Annotated Bibliography (1)Alexander, L. J. (2013). Arkansas Department of Human Services v. Cole: Another step toward same sex marriage in Arkansas? Arkansas Law Review. Vol. 66 (Issue 2), p527-547.The article focuses on the judgment of Arkansas Supreme Court case in Arkansas Department of Human Services v. Cole; the Arkansas Supreme Court ruled that the Arkansas Adoption and Foster Care Act of 2008, known as “Act1”, was an unconstitutional violation of the fundamental privacy rights granted by the Arkansas Constitution. The source is relevant to my thesis statement because it provides the legality of the law. The author pointed out that the election of November 2008, 58 % of Arkansas voters cast ballots that prohibit a person who cohabited “with a sexual partner outside of a marriage that is valid under the Arkansas Constitution and the laws of Arkansas” from adopting or fostering children. The source of the article was from the Arkansas Law Review 2013, vol. 66. The author, LaToya Alexander, is a teaching assistant at the University of Arkansas. She received her Juris Doctor at University of Arkansas School of Law. According to the case the Arkansas Supreme Court decisions suggest that the Arkansas judiciary is taking a more liberal approach to human-rights issues regarding equality and privacy. This is a quality source because it analyzes...
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...Introduction to Computing Explorations in Language, Logic, and Machines David Evans University of Virginia For the latest version of this book and supplementary materials, visit: http://computingbook.org Version: August 19, 2011 Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0 United States License Contents 1 Computing 1.1 Processes, Procedures, and Computers . . 1.2 Measuring Computing Power . . . . . . . 1.2.1 Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.2.2 Representing Data . . . . . . . . . 1.2.3 Growth of Computing Power . . . 1.3 Science, Engineering, and the Liberal Arts 1.4 Summary and Roadmap . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 2 3 3 8 12 13 16 Part I: Defining Procedures 2 Language 2.1 Surface Forms and Meanings 2.2 Language Construction . . . . 2.3 Recursive Transition Networks 2.4 Replacement Grammars . . . 2.5 Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 19 ...
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...world of opportunities in the workplace and marketplace, and be adamant to be the best. Some jurisdictions have set up domestic partnerships as a way to recognize same-sex unions, domestic partnerships may involve either different-sex or same-sex couples. Recent controversy has surrounded same sex domestic partner benefits since same sex marriages are not recognized by the government. Companies that recognizes a critical ingredient of success is the ability to value and leverage diversity-that is, the power of the people. Domestic Partners have been defined as legal or personal relationship between individuals who live together and share a common domestic life but are not joined in a traditional marriage, a common-law marriage, or a civil union. The phrases domestic partner was first used to describe living arrangements in 1985 according to The American Heritage Book of English Usage. The values range from being recognized as a culturally diverse company to attracting talent that would likely go to another company for the benefits. The problem has been health, dental, vision, pharmacy, long-term care, personal accident insurance and life insurance benefits are being offered to employees and their dependents, but not to domestic partners. With the increasing cost of medical attention, it is near impossible to live with out insurance coverage. Some companies are only recognizing legally married couples as qualified family members, which in turns leaves out unmarried opposite...
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...RESEARCH TECHNIQUES CLASSIFICATION Uni-bi variant techniques • Uni-variant analysis – Frequency Tables (qualitative) – Descriptive Statistics (quantitative) – Summary Tables • Bi-variant analysis – Contingency Tables – Correlation analysis – Variance analysis Research Techniques II 2 Multivariant analysis techniques DESCRIPTIVE TECHNIQUES Factor Analysis Correspondence Factor analysis Cluster Analysis Output Association / Reducing dimensions Typology EXPLANATORY TECHNIQUES Varian Analysis Regression Analysis Discriminant Analysis CHAID AID Conjoint Analysis Multidimensional Analysis Research Techniques II Output Experiment results Prediction / Classification Segmentation Ideal Product Image / Positioning 3 VARIANCE ANALYSIS ONE FACTOR A random design is that where random simples are selected for each treatment. Yij = µi + εij where Yij: it is the answer of observation j who has received the treatment i µi: it is the mean of the treatment i, and εij: it is a specific random part for each observation Hypotheses: H0 : µ1 = µ2 = . . . = µp Ha: At least two treatments have different means. Assumptions: 1. The probability distributions of the p populations follow a normal distribution. 2. The variances of the p populations are equal. 3. Samples are selected randomly and independently from the populations. This model could be also expressed as the following: Yij = µ + τi + εij Where µ: it is the general mean, and τi: it is the differential effect of the treatment i. H 0 : τ...
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...Pansexuality Polysexuality Queer Research Biological Human female sexuality Human male sexuality Demographics Environment Hetero/homosexual continuum Kinsey scale Klein Grid Neuroscientific Queer studies Sexology Timeline of sexual orientation and medicine Non-human animals Animal sexual behaviour Non-reproductive sexual behavior in animals Homosexual behavior in animals (list) Category Category v t e Part of a series on Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people LGBT flag Sexual orientation Homosexuality Demographics Biology Environment History LGBT history Timeline Social movements Culture LGBT community Coming out Pride Slang Symbols Gay village Rights Laws around the world Marriage Union Adoption LGBT parenting Military service Legal aspects of transgenderism Intersex human rights Social attitudes Heteronormativity LGBT stereotypes Queer Religion and homosexuality Religion and transgender Prejudice / Violence AIDS stigma Anti-intersex Biphobia Genderism Heterosexism Homophobia Lesbophobia Binarism Sexualism Suicide among LGBT youth Transphobia Violence against LGBT people LGBT trafficking Academic fields and discourse LGBT/Queer studies Lesbian feminism Queer theory Transfeminism Lavender linguistics Portal LGBT.svg LGBT portal v t e Celebrating same-sex marriage at the Lexington Pride Festival in 2015. Homosexuality (from Ancient Greek ὁμός, meaning "same", and Latin sexus, meaning "sex") is romantic attraction, sexual attraction or sexual...
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