Oh for fuck’s sake…excuse me while I sputter in disbelief for a few minutes. The custody battle over Isabella Miller-Jenkins was profiled in the Blade a couple of weeks ago. To summarize, Lisa and Janet Miller-Jenkins were partners living in Vermont when they decided to have a child. After Isabella was born, birth mother Lisa Miller-Jenkins broke up with her partner, became an “ex-lesbian,” and moved to Virginia to be near her family. A court in Vermont said that Janet had visitation rights, but Lisa wouldn’t allow Janet near Isabella. After repeated weekend visits with no results, the Vermont courts found Lisa in contempt of court for not permitting Janet to see the little girl. But now a Virginia court has granted Lisa sole custody, giving her the right to decide whether or not Janet has visitation rights.

What the fuck?! We’re talking about a mother here. Janet is missing out on important events in Isabella’s life, and missing the opportunity to see her daughter grow older. It seems awfully convenient that Lisa moved to homophobic Virginia (and became an “ex-lesbian”); it certainly looks like she was running away and trying to make it as inconvenient as possible for Janet to see Isabella. But what’s really outrageous is that Vermont, where the women were in a civil union and were both mothers to Isabella, has basically had sand kicked in its face by Virginia. The child was born in Vermont of a legal partnership in Vermont. Where the hell does Virginia get off yanking rights away from Janet Miller-Jenkins?! This is terrible - I just hope I’m missing out on some vital tidbit that would let Janet see Isabella.