On February 22nd The Human Rights Campaign called for the
resignation of Alabama Supreme Court Chief Justice Roy Moore in a press
conference with community leaders and clergy members in front of the Alabama
Supreme Court. The protest against Moore was sparked after he made explicit
anti-gay remarks in a concurrence he wrote in a custody case involving a gay
parent. At the press conference, Seth Kilbourn, HRC's National Field
Director, condemned Moore's hateful language and questioned his ability to
impartially judge gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender Americans, says
HRC.
"Judge Moore's prejudiced statements demonstrate that he is unable
to render fair and impartial judgement," said Kilbourn at the press
conference. "By his contemptible remarks and judicial intemperance, Judge
Moore has clearly shown that he is not capable of carrying out his sworn
duty to administer the law fairly and without personal bias. He has breached
the public trust and we urge him to resign before he further impugns the
integrity of his office and the judiciary branch of government."
Organizations who participated in the press conference included the
National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, the Human Rights Campaign, Equality
Begins at Home, Alliance for Civility and Tolerance and the Gay and Lesbian
Alliance of Alabama.
In his concurrence last week in a 9-0 legal decision that denied custody of
three children to their lesbian mother, the Justice gratuitously attacked
lesbian and gay families, said HRC. According to the judge, homosexuality is
an "inherent evil, and if a person openly engages in such a practice, that
fact alone would render him or her an unfit parent."
Moore has a history of imposing his theocratic opinions on all of
Alabama's citizens. Moore once defied a fellow Alabama judge's order to
remove a plaque of the Ten Commandments from his courtroom. For this action,
Moore became a Religious Right celebrity, receiving awards and appearing in
their media as a hero. In 1999, Moore received the Family, Faith, and
Freedom Citation presented by the anti-gay group the Family Research
Council. He also appeared on Pat Robertson's 700 Club, D. James Kennedy's
Coral Ridge Hour and James Dobson's Focus on the Family.
On February 4, the American Academy of Pediatrics issued a policy statement
supporting legal and legislative efforts to provide second-parent or
co-parent adoptions to same-sex couples. The academy based its position on a
review of scientific literature, which led it to conclude that such
adoptions are in the best interests of children.
The policy statement is published in the February 2002 issue of Pediatrics,
a peer-reviewed academic journal. It urges AAP members to "support the right
of every child and family to the financial, psychological and legal security
that results from having legally recognized parents who are committed to
each other and the welfare of their children." The statement is accompanied
by a technical report that provides details from the best available
scientific studies of children who grow up with gay or lesbian parents.
More information on adoption laws is available at
www.hrc.org/familynet.
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