The authors examined policies and practices related to adoption by gay and lesbian parents in North Carolina. In this article, they review the literature concerning the changing definition of family and the impact of sexual orientation on the development of children and review relevant federal and state legislation and adoption policy in North Carolina. Workers in a sample of 20 of the 100 county Departments of Social Service were interviewed. The results show that a lack of clear policy at a federal or state level and a lack of protection from discrimination made it difficult for gay and lesbian prospective adoptive parents to adopt.
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