Blog #3

Blog #3

            For the month of March, I decided to take a look at the poem, “Price of Parenthood,” in the course document, “Word Wielding Womb: Using the Body to Fight the War on Women,” which was written by Amy Arellano. The document as a whole uses powerfully worded poetry to explain the struggle seen by the women and marginalized individuals of our culture, tackling neglected topics ranging from rape, all the way to same sex couples having the right to be parents. The poem that really stood out to me in this document was the “Price of Parenthood.” This poem is written from the point of view of a lesbian couple in an unnamed state that prohibits lesbian or gay couples to adopt or become pregnant, in essence prohibiting them from building a family. This poem struck home for me, because my Aunt identifies as a lesbian woman, and the idea that if she was placed in these individual’s same scenario, she would be prohibited from building her family is something that disgusts me completely. My aunt Tami is one of the most compassionate, selfless individual that I’ve ever known, and I personally know she would make a great mother.  

            In the poem, Arellano paints the picture of a couple late at night in their room, “flip[ing] through a book of profiles looking at a menu of sperm instead of pizza trying to figure out what flavor will produce a chromosome mixture of baby” (Arellano). The mood set is one of love and excitement as they playfully and eagerly look through the “missing piece” they would need to begin to build their family. However only a few stanzas later their hopes and dreams of creating this family, are shattered for the time being after the discover that legally in their state they are unable to receive a sperm donor simply because of the fact that they do not fit the mold of the typical cookie cutter family. Another line in this poem that truly stands out to me, is the thinking behind barring these couples from adopting children. Arellano writes, “I ask how many would have homes if we lifted the same sex ban he confronts me that living with the tutti-fruttis will make the child’s life difficult and I wonder how this could ever outweigh the difficulties of being forgotten in the system” (Arellano). The simple fact that the lawmakers and voters of this state believe it would be in a child’s best interest to grow up uncared for, rather than raised by a homosexual household truly displays their ignorance in the issue.

            After reading this poem, I was curious to take a look at where and if these laws are still in affect anywhere in the United States. According to a Huffington Post article on the matter, I gladly learned that “A federal judge ruled [March of 2016] that Mississippi’s ban on same-sex couples adopting children is unconstitutional, making gay adoption legal in all 50 states” (Reilly). This is refreshing to me, but I find it so sad that it took this long in our culture to make this possible for homosexual couples in every place of our country.

Reilly, Mollie. “Same-Sex Couples Can Now Adopt Children In All 50 States.” The Huffington Post, TheHuffingtonPost.com, 1 Apr. 2016, www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/mississippi-same-sex-adoption_us_56fdb1a3e4b083f5c607567f.