Not to stigmatize single parenting, but all the studies do show that kids do best with two parents. The Religious Right lies and uses statistics on single parenting to argue against gay couples raising children, because that’s what lying liars do, but all of the social science shows that it’s not the gender of the parents that matters, just that two committed parents have the best shot at raising happy, successful kids. The American public seems to recognize this:
One third of Americans say they are comfortable with a variety of family situations, according to a study by the Pew Research Center. That group is called “acceptors.” Another third, called “skeptics” by researchers, have mixed views on nontraditional family structures. The final third group, known as “rejectors,” believe nontraditional families can have a negative impact on society.
The majority of acceptors and skeptics say that families headed by gay and lesbian parents are an acceptable, if not a positive, asset to society. The view on single mothers, however, is quite polarized. Ninety-eight percent of acceptors think women can raise children alone, but 99% of skeptics and 98% of rejectors believe it’s bad for society. The survey did not ask about single fathers.
I went ahead and used the same picture The Advocate used because, really, wow.
