Supreme Court Slams Nebraska Policy Against Same Sex Foster Parents

A Nebraska Court ruling claimed a long-held anti-same-sex foster parent policy was the same as a ‘Whites only’ sign in a job description.
In 2013, three same-sex couples filed a law suit against the homophobic policy and won.
The Court ordered the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services to pay $174,000 (£140,000 €164,000) for the plaintiff’s legal fees, reports the Omaha World Herald.

The state filed an appeal, claiming they had ‘quietly stopped’ the absurd 1995 policy in 2012.
But the Court ruled again in favor of the same-sex couples, noting the policy was not taken down until 2015.
Supreme Court justices wrote in the decision: ‘[The policy indicated that] “heterosexuals only” need apply to be foster parents.
The Court likened the archaic policy to that of hiring practices discriminating against minorities.

‘It is legally indistinguishable from a sign reading ‘whites only’ on the hiring-office door,’ the justices concluded.
The four-year long ordeal ended with the Courts again ordering the state to pay for all legal costs.
The appeal contains ‘no merit’, said the justices.
Danielle Conrad, executive director of the Nebraska American Civil Liberties Union believes it’s a stunning victory.
She said: ‘There are tens of thousands of LGBT people who call the Cornhusker State home and thousands of Nebraska children in need of a foster care placement.

‘This victory means that Nebraska’s motto of “Equality before the Law” rings out more truly for all,’ she said.
When asked why the office of state Attorney General Doug Peterson filed the appeal, he said in a statement that the appeal brought up ‘legitimate jurisdictional issues that needed to be considered by the court.
‘The court has ruled,’ the statement read.