Overcoming challenges as gay fathers

Songwriter and producer Desmond Child talks about the challenges of being a gay father when gay rights are still in flux
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Overcoming challenges as gay fathers

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The biggest challenge to a gay family is that we still don't have universal human rights in this country. And so certain states have certain protections for our families. And certain states don't. Someone's going to have to make a decision to let us be just like everybody else and have equal human rights, equal rights for our family, because our children are real human beings that deserve all the protections that the children of heterosexuals have. That's a challenge. It's easier when you live in a state where marriage is legal. And recently we had the demise of the DOMA laws. But it hasn't gone far enough. And we're the last group in America that doesn't have equal rights. So it's coming, but there's a lot of resistance still. So where you live can sometimes be a big challenge. We live in Tennessee, and there are a lot of people that perhaps would never have socialized with us. But when we joined the soccer team, the Republicans that most of them are, have embraced us. And I think we've changed their hearts and minds. But I still don't know what they're going to do when they go in the ballot box and vote for our family or against it. Because of advances in medicine, we're able to have families that are biologically ours. And many people think that because we're gay we're infertile. We're actually not infertile. And so our process of having children is perhaps a little bit different than others. But our children are real human beings. They are sacred. And they should not be marginalized. So I think that's a very important message that people should carry inside of them. Their children are precious. And all children are precious.

Songwriter and producer Desmond Child talks about the challenges of being a gay father when gay rights are still in flux

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Desmond Child

Songwriter & Producer

For nearly 4 decades, songwriter/producer Desmond Child has reigned as one of music’s most successful creative forces.  His list of accolades includes Grammy awards, 70 Top 50 singles, and songs that have sold over 300 million albums worldwide.  Child’s career has been highlighted by a stunning array of diversity from Bon Jovi and Aerosmith to Ricky Martin, Alice Cooper, KISS and Katy Perry.   Despite having worked for nearly 40 years as a writer, producer, and artist, Child remains energized and enthusiastic.  TWO: The Story of Roman and Nyro documents the 12-year journey of Desmond and his lifelong partner of 24 years, Curtis Shaw, and the extraordinary way they met and connected with Angela Whittaker, the woman who would carry their twin sons, Roman and Nyro, into the world.  From preconception through the boy’s first 10 years, TWO is the personal and powerful story of these unique individuals whose lives become inextricably woven together in magical and unexpected ways.  TWO is a testament to the universal power and ultimate triumph of love – that it is love that makes a family, affirming that modern families may be modern in their making, but timelessly human at their core.

 

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