Why I study... lesbian mothers

In 1976 I read an article in the feminist magazine Spare Rib that was to set me off on a research path that would occupy much of my working life for the next 25 years. The picture on the front of the magazine was of three women and their three children, and the caption read 'Why could one of these women lose custody of her child?' The answer was that the mothers on the front cover were lesbian, and one of them was facing a custody dispute that would inevitably end with the loss of her child – simply on the grounds of her sexual orientation.

Download PDF for article.