BORN TO AN UNMARRIED teenage mother, Gailen Brandt lived in a succession of foster homes in Washington state before being released for adoption at age two. At age three, he was placed with a Seattle couple. Both of Gailen's new parents were well-educated professionals. The affluent couple had even gone through four years of training to be adoptive parents. Some said that Gailen Brandt was very lucky to have found a good home. But others vehemently disagreed; in their view, Gailen was an innocent victim of a bad decision by the state agency that placed him. The issue revolved around the couple who took Gailen in. Their names were Ross and Luis Lopton, and they were gay.

Gailen's biological mother, Megan Lucas, was particularly upset when she found out who was planning to adopt her son. "Living with a gay couple is...