State Department deletes ‘Mother, ‘Father’ from forms for more correct ‘Parent One, ‘Parent Two’

January 10, 2011

Posted by Andrew Malcolm on latimes.com:

"No more 'Mother' and 'Father' for the Obama administration's State Department.

"The department has announced that it is replacing the traditional parental designations on its passport applications (see above) with the more contemporaneously correct 'Parent One' and 'Parent Two.'

"This takes effect when new forms come out Feb. 1.

"This might sound like some kind of psychotic cyber society eliminating family distinctions in favor of PC federal bureaucratic numbers. However, the State Department denies that this change is Democratic political correctness ignoring some obvious biological realities and distinctions. 'Hello, Parent One? This is Child Three calling.'

"The State Department calls the changes 'improvements,' saying they're intended to provide 'a gender neutral description of a child's parents' and to recognize 'different types of families.' A spokeswoman said the new terms 'recognize changes in medical science and reproductive technology.'

"Regardless, the official federal change at the halfway point of Barack Obama's presidential term is delighting gay rights groups.

"Deleting the customary 'mother' and 'father' terminology, says Jennifer Chrisler of the Family Equality Council, 'allows many different types of families to be able to go and apply for a passport for their child without feeling like the government doesn’t recognize their family.' Chrisler's group has long lobbied for the changes."

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