Can Gay Couples Adopt in Puerto Rico? Commonwealth Considering Law To Allow Same-Sex Couple To Adopt Children

Puerto Rico has turned some of its political focus toward the LGBT community with proposed laws on the table regarding same-sex couples adopting children and implementing a gender identity segment in the public schooling curriculum. Protesters and supporters swarmed the capitol Friday as lawmakers gathered to discuss the proposals. An adamant Christian group, Puerto Rico Pro Family, said it would request two amendments be made, one limiting the institution of marriage to heterosexual couples only. They also requested that matters of gender and discrimination be left up to parents to teach their children.

"There are certain issues that are non-negotiable," said Dr. Cesar Vazquez Muniz, spokesman of Puerto Rico Pro Family. "The problem is that they are trying to change the values of this country."

The bills are in their preliminary stages, with the Commonwealth currently in public hearings about the proposals. It is expected that legislators will debate on the proposals soon. Sen. Maria Gonzalez Lopez, who filed both bills, said that children should be educated on matters of gender and sexual discrimination to protect them from the same sort of prejudice.

"It's imperative that this legislative assembly recognize and not deny existing families their rights," the bill states. "People's lifestyles are moving further away each time from the concept of a traditional family nucleus."

The laws were filed in February shortly after a 5-4 vote to uphold a ban on same-sex couples adopting children. A Puerto Rican woman who fought for more than a decade to adopt a 12-year-old girl with her partner of 20 years unsuccessfully challenged the bill initially. Judges ruled that it was the decision of lawmakers to change the ban as they saw fit, prompting Gonzalez to challenge the measure herself.

Gonzalez believes that her bill regarding sexual discimination could be used to quell the gendered violence so prominent in the country. Though the bill has support, lawmakers cautioned that it would require substantially more money put toward the education system in order to overhaul the curriculum in any sort of way. Puerto Rico has been viewed as relatively pro-gay in recent years with regard to its laws, though harrassment and violence toward gays is still commonplace.

Legislators approved a bill in May that banned employment discrimination based on gender or sexual orientation. Lawmakers also extended anti-domestic-violence laws to include same-sex couples.