Should Grandparents Have A Legal Right To See Their Grandchildren?

Jet, Dec 20, 1999

Two months ago the U.S. Supreme Court agreed to hear a Seattle, WA, case where grandparents filed a lawsuit after they were granted visitation rights to see their two young granddaughters only to later lose the fights on appeal.

It seems that a growing number of court cases where grandparents are seeking either to visit their grandchildren or gain custody of them are becoming more and more common. And when the high court makes its ruling sometime next year in the Seattle case, which has been dubbed the "grandparents rights" case, the decision could either make it tougher for grandparents to gain visitation rights or help states make it easier to grant grandparents visits.

The dilemma has left many in quite a quandary: Should grandparents have a legal fight to see their grandchildren?

JET spoke with noted experts who addressed this profound question.

Justice Shelvin Louise Marie Hall of the Illinois Appellate Court asserts that grandparents should have a legal fight to see their grandchildren.

"Not only should they have a fight, but they do," Justice Hall points out. "In the United States, with the exception of D.C., there are visitation statutes where it's determined by a judge what is in the best interest of the children. Things are taken into consideration if the grandparents aren't a danger to the physical, mental or moral health of the child."

She continues that grandparents should have a legal right to visit their grandchildren because grandparents provide continuity.

"It is an issue of history, heritage and family honor. There are many things a grandparent would provide to grandchildren which parents don't have the time or knowledge to provide."

Concludes Justice Hall, "Grandparents can do things like no one else. Grandchildren are the grandparents' link to immortality. There is a tie that binds grandchildren to grandparents because they have the same blood and a common history. The courts have been known to honor these ties. I believe `blessed be the tie that binds.'"

Dr. Lenora Madison Poe, a psychotherapist in California who is state chair of the Coalition of Grandparents/Relative Caregivers, also believes that grandparents should be given a legal right to see their grandchildren.

"Grandparents and grandchildren have a special bond. Grandparents, in most instances, serve as that real pillar. The role of the grandparent is an achieved role," says Dr. Poe. "As a result, there is a tremendous value, feeling and passion on tradition. Grandparents want to visit their grandchildren and keep that bond."

Dr. Poe, author of the book Black Grandparents As Parents, maintains that when grandchildren don't see their grandparents, the grandchildren are deprived of that family linkage.

"They won't get that person who will provide for them love, nurturing, stability and security. It's passing that torch, and grandparents will be denied that next generation of their family. Grandparents have a tremendous amount of offerings to give in terms of stories and traditions. The grandchild will lack that emotional presence," she adds.

In a different light, Dr. Poe does cite that not all grandparents should have a legal right to see their grandchildren. Extenuating circumstances, which are rare in numbers, she cites, should be considered when grandparents place their grandchildren in situations where they don't have comfortable, safe environments. In these instances, those grandparents should not have a legal right to see their grandchildren, she says.

Establishing meaningful relationships with grandchildren is one reason Certified Family Life Educator Dr. Maxine Hammonds-Smith feels that grandparents should have legal rights to visit their grandchildren.

"Relationships with grandchildren are precious and integral moments for both the grandchildren and grandparents. Being together is a time for bonding and nurturing that cannot be found in any other relationship and is to be cherished forever," she contends.

Because of the growing number of grandparents who are taking steps to get the legal right to visit their grandchildren, Dr. Hammonds-Smith says that other actions have transpired in favor of grandparents on a larger scale.

"It is evident that grandparents want to have an essential role in their grandchildren's lives, and the legislature and courts are cognizant of the importance of the grandparent-grandchild relationship," explains the associate professor/director for the Center on Aging and Horizons Intergenerational Wellness at Texas Southern University. "With the legislature and courts recognizing the role grandparents play in the lives of these children, a plan has been implemented by which grandparents can seek visitation with their grandchildren. However, these laws do not give grandparents the complete rights for visitation. The law outlines clearly that visitation should be in the `best interest' of the grandchild, while every case for granting visitation to grandparents is different."

Dr. Jerome H. Hanley, director of the Division of Children, Adolescents and Their Families at the South Carolina Department of Mental Health, is adamant that grandparents should have a legal fight to see their grandchildren because of the rich history they tend to provide.