There’s a news story I’ve been following for a while that has to do with a London, Ontario family of a same-sex couple who had a child with a male friend. The second female member of the couple (the non-bio mother) had applied to gain status as the child’s third parent, and as of a ruling yesterday, she now has this status.
“Boy can have two mothers and a father, Ontario appeal court rules”
A.A. and C.C. have been in a stable same-sex union since 1990. In 1999, they decided to start a family with the assistance of their friend B.B.
The two women would be the primary caregivers of the child, but they believed it would be in the child’s best interests that B.B. remain involved in the child’s life.
Not only is this wonderful news for the progressive, sophisticated community of open minded individuals paving the beautiful realities of tomorrow in the face of traditionalists who would rather see loveless nuclear marriages than happy open families, this is also excellent for the child who will get to enjoy the love and support of 3 parents, 6 grandparents and a much larger family base than most others in the world.
There are those who believe that the human race is headed for hell specifically because the traditional definitions of marriage, family and community are being re-written. I say to them, who came up with those traditional definitions? Do you think things were always so? No they were not. Our idea of the 2 parent nuclear family is very recent. In fact untill about the middle ages, the Church itself frowned upon marriage of any kind. Until the Industrial Revolution, children were raised by an interconnected network of familial bonds with both blood and non-blood relatives. Monogamy itself is a concept very recently enforced in human history, there are many cultures in the world where it’s still not the norm.
So what’s the big deal? I say let all children enjoy the benefits of having more people love them and care for them. I say let all adults enjoy the same benefits. Let’s stop thinking of love as a limited commodity that must be held back. Instead let’s free ourselves to be who we know we are in our deepest dreams. Lets love and let love.