It was in our morning news post yesterday, but I didn’t give the pro-gay parenting decision out of Arkansas the stand-alone Slog post it deserved.

Arkansas is the deep south, and the citizens of that state love their gay neighbors about as much as the citizens of any other state in the deep south. Which is to say, they don’t love us much. But the state’s supreme court struck down the state’s ban on gay and lesbian foster parents yesterday. The state’s ban not only prevented the state from placing foster kids in the homes of gay and lesbian couples, but in any home where a homosexual resided, i.e. the home of a married heterosexual couple with a teenage lesbian daughter; a single woman who lived with her gay brother, etc. The ban was sweeping, it was hateful, and it hurts kids in the foster care system who need homes (there are more kids in Arkansas who need foster homes than there are foster homes), most of whom were—it has to be said—abandoned, abused, or neglected by their heterosexual parents.

Well, not only did Arkansas’ Supremes toss the ban out, they also went out of their way to endorse same-sex parents—foster, biological, adoptive—in their decision. Why? Because the facts about gay parents compelled them to:

“There is no correlation between the health, welfare and safety of foster children and the blanket exclusion of any individual who is a homosexual or who resides in a household with a homosexual,” Associate Justice Donald Corbin wrote.

In addition, the court said, the testimony of a Child Welfare Agency Review Board member demonstrated that “the driving force behind adoption of the regulations was not to promote the health, safety and welfare of foster children but rather based upon the board’s views of morality and its bias against homosexuals.”

The ACLU brought the lawsuit, and here’s their take on the decision:

“The Arkansas Supreme Court clearly understood what social scientists and every respected child welfare organization have been saying for years: There is no reason to deprive children of good homes by excluding lesbian and gay people from serving as foster parents,â€� said Rita Sklar, Executive Director of the ACLU of Arkansas. “We have a shortage of foster homes in Arkansas, especially for teenagers and sibling groups. Thanks to today’s ruling, Arkansas’ foster children have a better chance of finding loving homes.â€�

But the governor of Arkansas—Republican presidential hopeful and former fatso—Mike Huckabee has asked the legislature to screw over the the kids in need of foster homes in Arkansas.

Governor Huckabee said today he hopes legislators will consider reimposing a ban on gay foster parents that was struck down yesterday by the state Supreme Court. “I’m very disappointed that the court seems more interested in what’s good for gay couples than what’s good for children needing foster care,” said Huckabee in a press release.

Actually, the court is interested in the exact opposite, but that’s not going to stop Huckabee from distorting the decision, the facts, and the lives of kids in Arkansas. Bashing gay parents will win him votes from the haters who make up the bulk of the Religious Right, and who gives a shit about the safety and well-being hundreds of kids when there are votes at stake?

Still, the decision is something to celebrate, despite Huckabee’s statements today. And what better way to celebrate than by enjoying a pro-gay parenting music video featuring a Swedish glam rock band?

Video courtesy of my brother’s friend Po.