Home / Columns / Shared Paternity Can Go Beyond DNA

Shared Paternity Can Go Beyond DNA

By on March 1, 2019

A year ago, Jewrotica reported on a Jewish same-sex couple suing the USA to have both fathers recognized as the biological parents of both their sons. That couple recently won their lawsuit. The judge said the law will treat a married-same sex couple as the birth parents of children born to them provided they were married at the time of birth.

America is currently experimenting with legal definitions of marriage and parenthood to accommodate same-sex couples. A willingness to update laws is a vital element of American democracy that has maintained the nation for centuries. Everyone is born different in some way. It takes time to figure out how to make space for the diverse souls in a community. Someone has to set the precedent.

Although some communities in the UK and the USA complain about the growing acceptance of same-sex relationships, concerns can be allayed by noticing the strong families same-sex couples build. It is possible for a same-sex couple to be a link in a chain of generations that has continued and will continue for centuries.

Once one community paves the path, members of other communities can adapt the elements of that path to their traditions. The Forward reported about an LGBT space for Sephardic and Mizrahi Jews. Members of that group can socialize without having to choose between their traditions and their romantic feelings. Historically, American Ashkenazi Jews have spearheaded the inclusion of same-sex couples. Now, members of other communities have joined this effort.

The spread of memes from community to community through cultural evolution is similar to the spread of genes from community to community through new marriages. Over the long term, the origin of a new path matters less than the benefits of following that path. If a new set of traditions allows many people to live happily and at peace with themselves, they will follow it. America, the nation that cited the pursuit of happiness as a reason for existing, is a good spot for Jews to figure out how they can make these traditions work.

After earning a Masters of Science in Ecology and Evolution, Joseph Dunsay became a science writer for international audiences. His LGBT erotic e-book launched in the summer of 2015.
Related Items