Should We Allow Interracial Adoption?
It is being reported that the government is recommending that race play little or no part in adoption and fostering.
My late wife was adopted and always said she was special because she had been chosen by her parents. I’m certain that a lot of adopted people feel that way, but I’ve not knowingly met that many.
Two that I have met, were black and had been adopted by white families.
One was a girl, who used to cut my hair in Bury St. Edmunds some years ago and she told me, that the race difference had not been a problem.
The other was a black girl, who used to baby-sit our three boys, who at the time was being fostered in the village where we lived. Remarkably at eighteen, she liked her foster parents so much, that she effectively applied for her own adoption, so that she could stay. I think it is true to say, that her foster parents would have adopted her earlier, but that they couldn’t afford it. I can remember C coming home from Court one evening and telling me how the Judge had called her in, whilst he officiated in what he said was a rare case, but one that made his job worthwhile!
That last tale says to me, that it’s not the race or sexual orientation of the prospective adoptive parents that matter, but their attitudes and personality.
So in my book, the sooner we relax the rules on adoption, the better. Every child deserves a good home!
The Anonymous Widower 
I completely agree. I know a guy in his late 50s who is adopted, the family who adopted him were white, and had two white children they had adopted as babies in UK. They then worked and lived abroad, and when they came back to UK, they brought two black boys with them, early teens, so they could have a British education. One of the boys went back to his home country, but keeps in contact, visits often etc, and the other remained in UK< married a white woman and they have three children – the two of their children who are married have married white people.
I have come across other children who have been involved in mixed race adoptions, and they have done really well too, and been happy.
The couple I mentioned earlier, with the two white aodptees and the two black ones, were amazing people. They were sort of surrogate grandparents to my girls, who didnt have a happy experience of natural grandparents, they were best friends with this couple's grandchildren and just got welcomed into the fold.
Comment by liz | November 2, 2010 |
I just wonder where the rules came from. The evidence seems to be totally the other way. I once also met a Korean, who had been adopted by a Danish couple. She was proud of having two cultures, although she was slightly disappointed that she’d not been taught Korean!
Comment by AnonW | November 2, 2010 |