Demonstration of revision process. Choose some artifacts that show how you revised a piece of writing.

In your description and reflection of the artifacts, you should make your process apparent, even the parts that are not as obvious in the paper trail. Emphasize your decisions. How did you decide what to revise? How did you evaluate your work in the end? How did you know when you were done revising? (2) Exploratory essay I did a lot of revising on this piece. My first was adding the personal experiences I had with parents who are homosexual. I really wanted to add it because I saw how it affect a friend of my first hand and it honestly didnt really affect her at all. I also added more evidence from the opposing side. At first it was very difficult to find evidence from the opposing that was backed by studies.

Adoption in the United States is often an overlooked subject despite the fact there are over 127000 children waiting adoption and 520000 that are foster care in the United States and even more awaiting a loving family in orphanages. On average only 50000 of those children are adopted every year and every year more and more children are forced into foster homes (Chittom, Lynn-noreWagner, Geraldine). Also in many states it is illegal for gay couples to be able to adopt these children. Why is it that some states would rather see children homeless then in a family with homosexual parents? This, I find, is not acceptable I understand it is against some peoples religion for gay couples to even be together but the fact that some peoples belief are forcing children to be without homes is hurting these children. I have always been in favor of gay marriage and marriage equality for all so this issue is very dear to me. I have many friends who are gay and still do not have the right to get married.

This country was founded on freedom and the fact that everyone should have equal rights yet this country has been around for over three hundred years and still not all of our citizens have equal rights. I for one find this fact disgusting. It is ridiculous that this country was founded so everyone could have equal rights yet we are still fighting our self for these rights. No one should have to fight for the right to marry whoever they want. While I understand the counter argument that it goes against some peoples religion but this fact should be invalid. Separation of church and state was created so that people who dont share in same religious beliefs dont feel like their own rights have been violated. But this is what exactly is happening since many people feel that it is unholy and should be illegal solely based on their religious beliefs. This country was also founded so people could believe whatever they chose to and when we have laws based on religion it takes away the rights who dont share those beliefs. Because of my passion for the illegalization of gay marriage I was lead to this topic of whether or not gay couples should be able to adopt children, married or not. My initial opinion is leaning in favor of gay couples being able to adopt. It goes back to my opinion on gay marriage and that everyone should have equal rights in a free country and everyone should be able to start a family. In some states even single parents are adopt a child so why cant a loving couple who happens to be homosexual be able to as well. But I can only imagine how hard it must be for young children to not have their birth mother in their life and to have to deal with the social norms of society and to be discriminated against because of who their parents are. Ever since I was in high school I have had many homosexual friends and have known a few people who have adopted parents. I would rarely talk to my friends who had adopted parents about their situation but when I did they all shared the same opinion they loved their adopted parents because they raised them. Even though they were given the chance to meet their real

parents they didnt want to because they didnt consider them their parents. If you think about how much love these people have for their adopted parents I dont see why they wouldnt feel the same if they were the same sex. Another one of my good friends in high school had a mother who was a lesbian. My friend was her biological daughter from when her mother believed she was straight but found out later in life that she was a lesbian. Her mother tried to hide it some from her daughters friends for a long time because she didnt it to affect her daughters social life even though most of us knew. She told everyone that her lover was her sister for a long time until one day we were over at her house and her mom opened up to us and told us that she was a lesbian. None of us really cared but one who told the whole school but even most people at the school didnt care. My friend was called out for it maybe twice and then a month later no one care or even talked about it. I cant seem to think that if my friend was adopted by two lesbians that the outcome would have been that much different. In 2006 five states made it illegal for same sex couples to adopt. These states are Nebraska, Florida, Michigan, Oklahoma, and Mississippi. Furthermore in North Dakota there is a law that is phrased so that child-placement agencies may discriminate based on religious or moral objection. In Utah only married couples can adopt and gay marriage is illegal there so therefore so is gay adoption. The issue of gay marriage and adoption are fueled by one another. All the reasons someone is against gay marriage can also be used against gay adoption. Colorado, Idaho, South Carolina, Virginia, Wisconsin, Tennessee and South Dakota, and recently North Carolina have all banned gay marriage. California, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Ohio, Vermont, Washington, Wisconsin, and Washington, DC all allow both same sex marriage and adoption. In Mississippi single parents are allowed to adopt

children but not gay couples. In the United Kingdom gay adoption has been legal everywhere since 2002. (Driscoll, SallyStingl, Alexander) One counter argument for same sex adoption is that children need both a mother and a father. Without both of these components in their life children do not learn important lessons from both sexes. (Chittom, Lynn-noreWagner, Geraldine) However just because someone is a certain sex doesnt mean they cant teach someone about certain aspects in life. My mom taught me how to drive a car which in a lot of cases is stereotypical lesson for a father to teach the children how to drive a car. My grandfather was also the first person to teach me about cooking and my dad was the clean freak out of my parents so he taught me how to clean up after myself which are normally the mothers job. Because I was taught certain things by different sexes then what some people may think should be taught doesnt mean that I missed out on how to do something. Another example that is brought up a lot is sports, if you have two moms or two dads you cant be as good at sports. But that is why there are after school programs for children to learn sports. Whenever I was in PE as a kid every week we played a different sport which is a good way for kids to learn about what sports you might be good at and then sign your kids up for programs that can teach them. Parents dont always have to be the inspiration for children to want to play a sport. When I was younger I was involved in both gymnastics and soccer and neither one of my parents taught me how to play them I was interested in them through school because I was good at them. Furthermore many homosexual couples who are both male tend to have an open adoption which means the birth parents get to see pictures, letters, and even visit their child. These couples choose this method because they do know that no matter how many visits from an Aunt or

Grandmother the child still needs a mother in their life so they allow them be apart their life. In situations where the child will have two mothers this happens less often since the child already has two mothers and they sometimes feel replaced with the birth mothers present. So either way adopted children have a mother figure in their life. (Ligtvoet, Frank) Even though the birth mother is a part of these childrens life it is sometimes not enough and children still yearn for a mothers presents. Young children need a mother in their life and people who have children understand the bond between a mother and child and how it can never be replaced. These children do feel a sense of abandonment and loss of their parents. However every child who gets adopted feels a sense of abandonment from their mother and father whether they have an adopted mother and father or homosexual parents. In a perfect world everyone could have the ability and want to keep their children but it isnt and unfortunately these children have to deal with that fact.(Chittom, Lynn-noreWagner, Geraldine) Social scientists have also studied the effects on children who are raised in homosexual families verse straight families. Their results showed that children that are in homosexual familys parental discipline, intimacy, intelligences, ethics and growth, and involvement in their childrens life is the same as heterosexual families. In addition to that homosexual families tend make more family rituals then other couples to help strengthen the bonds between their children and themselves and they seem to be more dedicated to maintaining the familys integrity(Farrell, Courtney Simone Isadora Flynn). On the other hand research conducted in Spain shows that it is not good for children to be in homosexual families. Their research suggested that children from these types of families tend to have lower self-esteem, higher stress levels, and an increase in mental disorders. This research also showed that kids in homosexual relationships struggle more with identifying their own

sexuality. However this fact was quickly disproven by the American Sociological Association saying that there is not an elevated rate of children being homosexual because their parents were gay and that children raised by lesbians or gay men were as well-adjusted emotionally as their peers. Furthermore the lower self-esteem, higher stress levels, and an increase in mental disorders is only an issue when the children are raised in environments that shun homosexually in general (Farrell, Courtney Simone Isadora Flynn). After researching whether homosexual couples should be able to adopt or not I believe even more so that they should. With the amount of children in foster care there is no reason they shouldnt be able to. Children are going homeless and being pulled in and out of foster care every day and no matter how much research says it is bad for children to be with homosexual couples its even worse for them to transfer from home to home. Furthermore most research is about how a child needs a mother and father and yes it is best for a child to have both but it doesnt mean their life isnt going to be as fulfilling. People see children raise by single parents every day and yes it hurts the kids not to know one of their parents but at least this way there are two parents caring for one child. And all the other research was disproven so what is bad about homosexual couples raising children? Nothing. As I said before I can only imagine how hard it must be for young children to not have their birth mother in their life and to have to deal with the social norms of society and to be discriminated against because of who their parents are but the love and support these children get from their parents is more than enough to help get them through it. These children will become strong individuals because of it.

Works Cited Chittom, Lynn-noreWagner, Geraldine. "Point: Children Suffer With Same-Sex Couples." Points Of View: Gay & Lesbian Adoption (2013): 2. Points of View Reference Center. Web. 15 Oct. 2013. Driscoll, SallyStingl, Alexander. "Counterpoint: Sexual Orientation Should Not Be A Deterrent To Adoption." Points Of View: Gay & Lesbian Adoption (2013): 3. Points of View Reference Center. Web. 14 Oct. 2013. Farrell, Courtney Simone Isadora Flynn. Gay & Lesbian Adoption: An Overview. Points of View: Gay & Lesbian Adoption (2013): 1. Points of View Reference Center. Web. 14 Oct. 2013. Ligtvoet, Frank. The Misnomer of 'Motherless' Parenting. Points of View: Gay & Lesbian Adoption (2013). Points of View Reference Center. Web.20 Oct. 2013.