Feb 1st, 2002
GLBT Communities & Welfare Reform
The Alternatives to Marriage Project (ATMP) has just released “Let Them Eat Wedding Rings: A Report on Marriage Promotion and Welfare Reform.” The report challenges right-wing conservative attempts to end poverty by using welfare dollars to promote marriage.
Regarding the overlap of welfare reform and GLBT issues, ATMP Executive Director Dorian Solot commented, “Poor LGBT people are disproportionately affected by any policy that rewards people for marrying or penalizes them for being unmarried.” The full report includes ten “Golden Principles” on which the group says welfare reform should be based.
At the end of 2001, the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force published “Leaving Our Children Behind: Welfare Reform and the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender Community” The report critically analyzes welfare reform, its impact on poor GLBT people, and the threats posed to the entire GLBT community.