Keep our children's options as widely open as possible!
I fully support non-discrimination in the placement of children for both foster care and adoption. The first and only consideration should be the welfare of the children involved, to provide each child in Virginia with a loving and stable home. We live in a pluralistic, diverse, society, and our foster care and adoptive families should reflect the same diversity that we have in the families created without legal review. Virginia does not require families related by blood to conform to standards relating to race, national origin, ethnicity, gender, age, religion, political beliefs, sexual orientation, disability and family status, and I believe the same latitude should be extended to families wishing to foster or adopt children. I believe it is dangerous to create standards which reflect personal preferences (no matter how widespread) rather than scientifically documented risk for harm. Since children who spend long periods of time as wards of the state are at risk, we should work hard to minimize that time. I do not believe it is in the best interests of children, parents, or the Commonwealth to discriminate on the basis of race, national origin, ethnicity, gender, age, religion, political beliefs, sexual orientation, disability or family status when providing services to children.
