Triple parenthood: FALGBT and the Buenos Aires Province make history

After a case was taken on by FALGBT, the National Board for Equality, and the LGBT Ombuds Office, the Buenos Aires Province granted, through an order by the provincial civil registry, paternal recognition of the first baby to also bear the surname of his two mothers. Antonio, of Mar del Plata, will have three parents. This historic decision is the first of its kind in Latin America and it recognizes family diversity in our country.

The Argentine Federation of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Trans People (FALGBT) welcomes the Buenos Aires Province’s decision to grant recognition of triple parenthood to a boy in Mar del Plata.

Antonio is the son of Susana and Valeria, a couple married under marriage equality, and for the past year he has been registered with the surname of both mothers, as the law provides. Hernan, his biological father, is also present in his upbringing, and will now give him his surname after having petitioned the provincial civil registry with the mothers’ consent. This is the first registration of its kind to take shape in Latin America.

Among the grounds of the decision, which enjoyed the endorsement of the province’s Cabinet Chief Alberto Perez and Cabinet Undersecretary Juan Pablo Alvarez Echague and the signature of civil registry head Claudia Corrado, were that the child’s father did not renounce his right to claim parenthood in the in vitro fertilization process and, even more, freely expressed that he is the biological father and that he shares the best interests of the child, which Susana and Valeria also pursue. The family’s petition was supported by FALGBT, the LGBT Ombuds Office, and the National Board for Equality.

“Since the start of Daniel Scioli’s initiative, we have joined in expanding rights in concert with the changes that have been implemented nationwide, such as the marriage equality law, gender identity law, and reform of the civil code,” stated Perez.

FALGBT President Esteban Paulon added: “Our country is experiencing a wonderful process of rights expansion. Today, with the recognition of triple parenthood—groundbreaking in Latin America—brings us one step closer to consolidating a society that recognizes and protects all family forms. We are without a doubt opening a door toward a better country, with greater happiness, and which ensures everyone’s right to start a family and live in complete freedom.”