The Uniform Parentage Act (UPA) is a set of definitions and guidelines, provided by the federal government, intended to protect children and give parents and Family Courts a reliable way to determine which two people are to be held responsible for the financial and emotional upbringing of a child. It answers that age old question, "Who's your daddy?" Which is all well and good when that's the question you need answering. What so many couples in this country need, gay and straight alike, is a set of rules more inclusive of the newly emerging non-traditional American family unit.

A simple reading of the main points of the Act (which was revised in 2000 to incorporate the Uniform Status of Children of Assisted Conception Act) and you'd think Rosie O'Donnell herself penned it. For instance: UPA § 202: “A child born to parents who are not married to each other has the same rights under the law as a child born to parents who are married to each other." Not to mention all the attention paid to non-biological spouses in situations that involve surrogates and sperm donors. Under the new UPA, there are ways to determine natural parents, but there are also de facto parents and legal parents and intended parents -- all legal jargon for non-biological, but totally loving and capable and dedicated, parent. Awesome, right?

Not quite. According to this fantastic report issued after the 2000 revision, the UPA "falls short of its purported primary purpose by unreasonably limiting parentage to married couples and biogenetic parents." Meaning, a judge who follows the UPA is still defining a pair of parents as one mother and one father who combined DNA to make a kid. Despite all that fun, seemingly inclusive language, the UPA turns out to be just a bunch of heterosexist gobblety-gook.

The results are inconsistent and abhorrent custody rulings that are destroying same-sex families and fueling the flames of anti-gay sentiment throughout the nation. A little recognition by the Federal Government would be a welcomed gesture of inclusivity for all parents, biological or not, gay or straight.

The Uniform Parentage Act must be revised to recognize biological and non-biological parents, and their same sex partners, as actual and legal parents regardless of their marital status or sexual orientation.