On Bolles:

2) What kinds of kinship bonds do lesbian/gay people

often form in our society?

Although exact figures for children being raised in gay or lesbian families are difficult to obtain because of possible reporting biases, estimates are that 2 to 10 million gay and lesbian parents are raising 6 to 14 million children in the United States. There is wide variation in same-sex family compositions; there are domestic partnerships not dissimilar from married partnerships, single lesbian mother families, single gay father families, divorced lesbian mother families, divorced gay father families, civil unions, planned lesbian mother-led families, and planned gay father-led families. Planned families can come into existence through assisted reproduction (i. e., egg donation, sperm donation, artificial insemination), surrogacy, or adoption. Most children who have gay parents were born in the context of a heterosexual relationship; these children have experienced divorce or separation and may still have contact with another parent. Other children may be adopted by a gay or lesbian couple together or by one parent who then enters such a relationship. The adoptive rights of same-sex parents are not recognized in 11 states, however.