A widowed mother of five children in Oregon, who wants to adopt a pair of siblings under the age of 10 from foster care has appealed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit in San Francisco, California, after a lower court ruled against her last year.
Oregon’s Department of Human Services categorically excluded Jessica Bates from adopting any child—no matter their age or beliefs—because she would not violate her religious beliefs and promote Oregon’s radical gender ideology.
Represented by attorneys with the non-profit Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF), Bates has filed her opening brief with the 9th Circuit Court. Her attorneys asked the appeals court to allow her to obtain her certification, free of discrimination, while her lawsuit continues so that she can eventually provide a loving home to children in need.
“Jessica wants to open her home to children in need right now, but Oregon officials are placing a dangerous ideological agenda above kids’ best interests,” ADF Legal Counsel Johannes Widmalm-Delphonse said in a statement. “Jessica is a loving mother who feels called to adopt siblings from foster care. Oregon is categorically excluding her merely because she shares a view held by millions of Americans: that boys and
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