Last Monday the American Academy of Pediatricians (AAP) issued a statement on the rights of same-sex couples to adopt children. The Academy’s opinion: “co-adoption” by gay couples should be made legal— provided that one partner already has custody of the child.The Academy represents over 50,000 pediatric specialists in the United States, making its voice a powerful lobbying force.Dr. Joseph Hagan Jr., chairman of the policy committee, hopes that the AAP’s position will break ground for new legislation. “The new policy focuses specifically on gaining legally protected parental rights for gay ‘co-parents’ whose partners have children,” Hagan said. “But it also could apply to gay couples who want to adopt a child together.”For the most part, medical professionals outside the pediatric field also seem to support the Academy’s position. The American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and the American Psychological Association have also publicly supported gay adoptions, citing evidence that children of same-sex couples are as psychologically well-adjusted as those raised in “traditional” families.Not everyone is so pleased with the idea. Ken Connor, president of the Family Research Council, said, “This is part of a campaign to normalize homosexual relationships and accord them a status equivalent to marriage.Children should not be pawns in a political shell game.”