Same-sex relationships

Stonewall

argues 5-7% of the adult population are in ss relationships.

There is evidence of increased social acceptance of samesex relationships in recent years. Male homosexual acts were decriminalised in 1967 for consenting adults over 21.

more equal

Social policy now treats all couples more equally. For example, since 2002, cohabiting couples have had the same right to adopt as married couples.

chosen families-weeks

argues that increased social acceptance may explain a trend towards same-sex cohabitation and stable relationships that resemble those found among heterosexuals.

weeks 2

Weeks sees gays as creating families based on the idea of ‘friendship as kinship’, where friendships become a type of kinship network. He describes these as ‘chosen families’ and argues that they offer the same security and stability as heterosexual families