There are essentially two types of adoption agencies: public agencies which are generally supported by public funding and managed by the state and private agencies licensed by the state but managed privately (Reference 99). . Regardless of the type of agency, the state has a say in its operations, and if the state prohibits same-sex adoptions, then agencies will have to comply. In 1977, Florida passed a civil rights ordinance making discrimination based on sexual orientation illegal in Dade County. In response to the creation of the ordinance, a campaign called "Save Our Children" was created and led by the singer of the hit "Paper Roses" and former winner of the Miss Oklahoma beauty pageant, Anita Bryant. The campaign, whose members were primarily Christians, used biblical principles as the foundation and driving force in the fight against homosexuality. They managed to link homosexuality to child recruitment and pedophilia, and with enough supporters, they managed to muster enough votes to overturn the order. (REF coming soon) That same year, Florida officially passed a law prohibiting any homosexual person from adopting a child, and in that law, the term "homosexual" was clearly defined as anyone "known to engage in sexual current and voluntary homosexual activity. ", thus establishing a distinction between homosexual orientation which describes a person attracted to another person of the same sex and homosexual activity which is considered a sinful act against the body and against God. (REF Érick). Therefore, Florida's adoption law allows unmarried people to adopt, many of whom have done so through the foster care system. Coincidentally, the adoption law does not prohibit homosexuals from serving as foster carers... middle of paper ... uh turned or declared unconstitutional, all of which failed. However, on Wednesday, September 22, 2010, the State of Florida overturned the ban on same-sex adoptions. The ruling followed an appeal against a 2008 ruling by the Department of Children and Families that required judges to thoroughly review evidence of what were considered risk factors among potential same-sex parents. . This risk “included increased sexual activity by children of same-sex parents and more incidents of teasing and bullying experienced by children from same-sex homes.” (see 24) The appeals panel said the evidence collected by the State did not support these claims and that they were not scientifically valid. As a result, the law was upheld and, with immediate effect, gays and lesbians were now allowed to adopt children; and thus a thirty-three year old law was abolished.