[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 159 (2013), Part 5]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 7108]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




       THE INTRODUCTION OF THE EVERY CHILD DESERVES A FAMILY ACT

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. JOHN LEWIS

                               of georgia

                    in the house of representatives

                         Thursday, May 16, 2013

  Mr. LEWIS. Mr. Speaker, I am proud to rise today with my good friend, 
the gentlewoman from Florida (Ms. Ros-Lehtinen), to introduce the Every 
Child Deserves a Family Act in honor of National Foster Care Awareness 
Month. Our colleague, the gentlewoman from New York (Mrs. Gillibrand) 
will sponsor the companion legislation in the Senate.
  First, I would like to thank my friend, my sister, Congresswoman Ros-
Lehtinen for being my partner in this important fight. I would also 
like to pay tribute to our former colleague, Congressman Stark, and the 
hard work of his staff, Jeff Hild, in first championing this important 
bill. I am fully committed to moving this landmark legislation across 
the finish line.
  Last week, our constituents--including Philip McAdoo and his son 
Zaden from Atlanta--came to Washington, DC to highlight how essential a 
loving home can be to a child in need of support and understanding. 
Philip, his partner Sean Cavanaugh, and Zaden are a beautiful, loving, 
globe-trotting family; simply being with them just warms your heart. 
Their story is the happy ending which every foster care youth and 
potential parent should have the opportunity to experience.
  Today, there are more than 400,000 children in our foster care 
system, with over 104,000 of them waiting for a permanent family. There 
are ample ``qualified'' adoptive and foster parents who are overlooked. 
As result, far too many youth ``age out'' without any family to support 
and love them. This bill would fix this problem--saving money and 
heartache and restoring hope and happiness in the process.
  The Every Child Deserves a Family Act is a simple and straightforward 
proposal. It would prohibit any entity that receives federal child 
welfare funds from discriminating against prospective adoptive or 
foster parents on the basis of their sexual orientation, gender 
identification, or marital status. This bill also prevents 
discrimination against foster care youth on the basis of the sexual 
orientation or gender identity.
  Mr. Speaker, I fought too long and too hard against discrimination of 
every kind. This is a problem that is fixable. Our common-sense 
legislation is supported by nearly 100 child welfare, civil rights, 
GLBT advocacy, and faith-based organizations because it places the best 
interest of every child first.
  Today, we are joined by over 50 Members of Congress in introducing 
this bill, and I hope all of my colleagues will join us in support of 
this good will effort. Simply said, the Every Child Deserves a Family 
Act is just the right thing to do.

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