An Illinois bill that would give adopted adults access to their birth certificates has overcome an important hurdle, passing a March 18 vote in the State House.

The bill represents more than 15 years of work for sponsoring Rep. Sara Feigenholtz, D-Chicago, an adoptee herself. Feingenholtz said data from Illinois and other states show birth parents contacted by adopted children overwhelmingly consent to give medical or other personal information. [Source: St. Louis Dispatch]

If passed, birth mothers would have until January 1, 2011 to decide whether theyre willing to have their information released. The bill is now headed to the Senate for a vote.

Labels: adoption rights, adopted adults

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Arkansas Governor Mike Beebe has reiterated his opposition to a state law that prevents unmarried couples from adopting children, but he stopped short of calling for the law to be overturned. Associated Press writer Andrew DeMillo reported the governors comments in a Nov. 4 article:

Beebe says he's concerned about the impact that an Arkansas law banning unmarried couples from becoming foster or adoptive parents is having on children who need good homes.

Beebe told reporters Wednesday that he's not proposing a repeal of the initiated act voters approved a year ago, but said he's still opposed to the measure. Beebe said he still thinks foster care and adoptions should be handled on a case-by-case basis.

Department of Human Services officials said they haven't studied whether the ban is limiting the number of homes that are available for children. More than a dozen families have sued the state seeking to overturn the ban.

Labels: laws, adoption rights, unmarried couples

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A member of the U.S. House of Representatives has introduced a bill that would limit federal funding to states whose adoption or foster care rules discriminate on the basis of marital status or sexual orientation.

An Oct. 19 Washington Blade article by Chris Johnson provided the following details about the efforts of U.S. Rep. Pete Stark (D-Calif.):

Stark said in an interview that he introduced the legislation, H.R. 3827, in part because thousands of children each year "age out" of the child welfare system without finding homes.

"We got 25,000 kids a year maturing out of the welfare system without permanent foster care or adoptive care, and the prospects of those children having a successful adult life are diminished greatly," he said. "These are kids who end up in the criminal justice system, or end up homeless."

States with explicit restrictions on adoption that the pending legislation would affect are Utah, Florida, Arkansas, Nebraska and Mississippi. Florida, for example, has a statute specifically prohibiting gays from adopting, and in Arkansas, voters last year approved Act 1, which prevents unmarried co-habitating couples, including same-sex partners, from adopting children.

The legislation, Stark said, also would restrict funds for states where restrictions are put in place by agencies, individual social workers or judges, or where restrictions are part of the common law of the state.

Labels: legislation, adoption rights, same-sex couples

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In a May 15 article on the Advocate website, Julie Bolcer reported on an effort by Louisiana legislators to ban adoptions by gay and lesbian couples:

The Louisiana house voted overwhelmingly [May 12] to pass a bill that would prohibit the issuance of birth certificates that list the names of two unmarried parents who adopt a Louisiana-born child in another state.

The legislation, which passed by a vote of 77-18, stems from a December ruling in which U.S. district judge Jay Zainey sided with two California men seeking a joint birth certificate for the Shreveport-born child they adopted in New York in 2006.

Though the Louisiana effort is designed to outlaw adoption by gay adults, Bolcer notes that, as currently written, the legislation may not accomplish what its supporters intended.

"Single adults and married couples would qualify as adoptive parents, but unmarried couples would not, regardless of their sexual orientation," she wrote. "Presumably, single gay people could still adopt."

Labels: legislation, adoption rights, same-sex couples

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Adoption disclosure legislation that went into effect June 1 in Ontario, Canada, give thousands of adoptees the chance to learn about their biological family history. Under the new law, adoptees can apply for copies of adoption orders and birth registrations.

According to the Ministry of Community and Social Services, the result is adoptees will be more easily able to find out what their original names were, as well as who their birth parents were. It could also help birth parents learn the name their child was given after he or she was adopted. (Source: CBC News)

The new law will also give adoptees access to medical information that had been previously out of reach. Both adoptees and birth parents have the option of filing a disclosure veto if they want their information to remain sealed.

Many adoption advocates believe that learning more about their personal history can help adopted children deal with many adoption-related stresses and developmental issues.

Labels: adoption rights, adopted children, birth_parents

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The British Association for Adoption and Fostering (BAAF) has apologized for the use of discriminatory language in an adoption guide booklet.

The Pink Guide to Adoption for Lesbians and Gay Men ... advised would-be adopters: "Don’t worry about society. Children need good parents much more than retarded homophobes need an excuse to whinge [sic], so don't let your worries about society's reaction hinder your desire and ability to give a child a loving, caring home." (Source: The Guardian)

The BAAF has admitted that the phrase was "not appropriate," but stressed that it was a direct quote from an adopter, and did not necessarily reflect the views of the organization. All 100 advance copies of the booklet have been recalled, and the phrase will be changed before the booklet is released to the general public.

Labels: adoption rights, adoption_agencies

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In a case that demonstrates the degree to which legal confusion can derail an international adoption, a North Carolina couple who traveled to Egypt to adopt twin boys have instead been arrested and put on trial for alleged child trafficking.

According to a May 13 Associated Press article, Iris Botros and Louis Andros attempted to adopt in the United States, but a number of factors including Andros' age (he is 70, she is 40) prevented them from doing so. AP writers Anna Johnson and Maggie Michael provided the following details of the events surrounding the couple's arrest:

In Muslim countries like Egypt, such adoptions are nearly impossible, snarled in religious tradition and murky laws. Botros and Andros ... also may have been caught up in an attempt by the Egyptian government to show it is cracking down on human trafficking after criticism from the United States.

On the advice of Egyptian friends, the two traveled to Cairo in the fall and were put in touch with a Coptic Christian orphanage that was caring for two newborn orphans. The orphanage gave them forged documents to say Botros had given birth to the children, and the couple donated $4,600 to the orphanage ...

But when they tried to get American passports for the babies, a U.S. Embassy employee became suspicious of them ... When asked by an embassy official, Botros admitted she wasn't the biological mother, [the couple's] lawyer said.

"Adoption experts said the case highlights the importance of being well-informed and working with governments and reputable agencies to make sure laws and social norms are followed," the AP writers reported.

Labels: international, laws, adoption rights

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A probate judge in Michigan's Van Buren County is requiring potential adoptive parents to sign a controversial document that requires stay-at-home parenting until the child is eligible for preschool. A May 10 article by Kalamazoo Gazette writer Rosemary Parker provided details about Judge Frank Willis's "morality pledge":

Willis requires parents who adopt infants in his county to agree that one of them will be home with the baby during the first year and won't work full time during the baby's preschool years. Willis is perhaps the only justice in Michigan to require such a pledge, which he acknowledges is not legally binding and may be offensive and outdated to some. ...

Willis said he does not require the pledge from adoptive parents of foster children, children with special needs or children from other countries. He restricts the requirement to parents adopting babies born in this country because "this is a babies' market; that's where the waiting list is." ...

Michigan Supreme Court and Court Administrative Office spokeswoman Marcia McBrien declined to answer questions about the legality of Willis's pledge requirement, in the event the matter might someday come before the state's top court.

Monica Farris Linkner, a member of the American Academy of Adoption Attorneys, told the Gazette that Willis' requirement limits the adoption of healthy newborn babies to two-parent families whose socioeconomic status allows them to get by on only one income.

Labels: adoption rights

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A man who claims to be the father of a four-year-old girl that pop star Madonna hopes to adopt says he wants to raise the girl himself. James Kambewa said that he has never met his supposed daughter and that he thought she had died along with her mother, who was Kambewas then-girlfriend.

In an Early Show world exclusive, Kambewa tells correspondent Priya David, "I do not want my baby to be adopted because I want to take care of her and I'm capable to take care of my baby ... Mercy, she is a Malawian  so [I] need her to grow as a Malawian, as well with our culture." (Source: CBS)

Madonna's adoption bid was initially rejected by a Malawian court because she hadn't met the country-s residency requirement of 12 to 18 months before adopting. Court officials, and some human rights groups, have expressed concern over the possible bending of the rules of international adoption, saying it puts children at greater risk of being trafficked.

Labels: international, adoption rights

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An April 28, 2009, article by Time magazine writer Kayla Webley reports that adoptions of Chinese children by U.S. parents have declined dramatically over the past two years.

Webley attributes this decline to heightened standards that the Chinese government put into effect in May 2007:

The stricter guidelines, intended to limit the overwhelming number of applicants to China's well-regarded adoption program, have been effective -- adoptions of Chinese children by U.S. citizens have dropped 50 percent, according to the U.S. State Department.

The new regulations require, among other things, that adoptive parents be married, under 50, not classified as clinically obese, not have taken antidepressant medications in the past two years, not have facial deformities and meet certain educational and economic requirements.

Webley's Time article noted that the number of children who were adopted by U.S. citizens through the state-run China Center for Adoption Affairs fell from 7,906 in 2005 to 3,909 three years later.

Labels: international, adoption rights

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Pop star Madonna has appealed a court ruling which denied her request to adopt a three-year-old girl from Malawi. A Malawian court official said Monday that Madonna's appeal will be heard in early March.

Joseph Chigona, Registrar of the High Court and the Supreme Court of Appeal, said the case will come before three judges from the Supreme Court of Appeal on May 4 ...Malawi requires prospective parents to live in the country for 18 to 24 months while child welfare authorities assess their suitability.(Source: The Associated Press)

A lower court judge denied Madonna's adoption request based on the residency law, citing concerns that ignoring the law could put other children at risk of being trafficked. Madonna's appeal will be heard in a closed-door session that she is not required to attend.

Labels: international, adoption rights, malawi

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Five years ago, before Angelina Jolie brought international attention to the African nation, the Blome family adopted a six-year-old boy from Ethiopia. Since then, adoptions of Ethiopian children have soared from just 289 in 2004 to more than 1,700 last year.

Fraud concerns put a halt to adoptions from Guatemala and Vietnam in the last several months. The Kazakh Embassy has ceased processing adoption dossiers -- the inches-think binder of required home study and family background documents. ... China poses challenges as well. ... Ethiopia, by contrast, allows both married and single parents to adopt, and the process typically takes less than two years. (Source: The Contra Costa (California) Times)

The adoption agency chosen by the Blomes five years ago had an intriguing requirement -- that the couple commit to giving something back to Ethiopia. So every year, Erik Blome returns with crates of art supplies and runs workshops at eight orphanages.

Labels: international, adoption rights, ethiopia

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Butler County, Ohio's adoption policy is a source of controversy because it does something that the state adoption laws don't: It gives preference to married couples.

The conflict, according to the four-page opinion signed ... by Assistant Prosecuting Attorney Roger Gates, is that the Butler County rule adds a line that would put married couples before single parents, unmarried couples, and same-sex couples in adoption cases. Even though these groups would not be excluded from adopting ... the rule does place a priority on placing children with married couples. (Source: The Cincinnati Enquirer)

The policy, which was quietly enacted by outgoing agency Director Michael Fox, was suspended in late March pending a legal review.

Labels: adoption rights, same-sex couples, single_parenting, unmarried couples, controversy

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The Indiana Supreme Court has ruled that a man who adopted twin girls from a surrogate mother in South Carolina didn't follow the requirements for interstate compacts.

Indiana child-welfare officials originally said the two girls, who were born in April 2005, were not eligible for out-of-state adoption because state law restricts such moves to cases where the children are considered 'hard to place' due to factors such as race, ethnic background, or disability.

The Supreme Court also ruled that the girls will stay with their adoptive father until the matter is settled.

Source: The Courier-Journal (Kentucky)

Labels: adoption rights, court, fathers, indiana

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A British man and his wife were turned down by child adoption authorities because the man is too fat.

Damien Hall, age 24, is 6'1" tall and weighs 340 pounds. When he and his wife applied to adopt a child, they received a letter from the Leeds City Council that said they were ineligible "due to concerns that the medical advisors have expressed regarding Mr. Hall's weight."

"The bottom line is I am too fat," Mr. Hall said. "I feel as though we were only judged on my weight and not all the other good things about us. We don't smoke or drink, and we could give a child a happy and safe home."

Labels: adoption rights, obstacles

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Every person born in the U.S. has a birth certificate that names the place, time, and date of birth along with the names of the birth parents. But if a child is adopted, the original birth certificate is changed and the adoptive parents are listed as the birth parents - something this adoptive mom from Iowa struggles to accept.

"Adoption isn't necessarily a beginning or ending for any child. It's part of that child's journey through life. Adopted children have a biological family that will always and inevitably be part of them - whether they know anything about them or not. Family roots run deep, and when adopted children grow up, they should be allowed to get in touch with these roots if they choose."

A child's birth family is not erased or replaced when the child is adopted. And, according to the report referenced in this opinion letter, changes in a child's birth information - and lack of access to the original information - raises "significant civil rights concerns and potentially serious, negative consequences for their physical and mental health."

The Academy at Swift River is a private emotional growth school for teenagers. Learn more at SwiftRiver.com.

Labels: adoption rights, adoptive_parents, birth_parents

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The Florida Supreme Court ruled last Thursday that adoption agencies must notify unmarried men when a child thought to be theirs is being placed for adoption. The ruling comes in the wake of a long court case involving an unmarried man who is trying to restore is parental rights for a boy who was born in August, 2005.

"The court's opinion says men believed to be a child's biological father must be notified of the mother's adoption plan, and that he has 30 days to file a paternity claim with the Putative Father Registry. If he does not file a claim with the registry, his parental rights may be terminated, the opinion states."

The Registry was created in 2003 to prevent birth fathers from contesting adoptions months or years after the adoption had been finalized. Heart of Adoptions, Inc. attorney Jeanne Tate called the ruling a "victory", stating that it will create more "certainty and stability" in the adoption process. Read more at ChronicleOnline.com.

Mount Bachelor Academy is a therapeutic boarding school for teens dealing with emotions related to adoption, grief, and loss. Learn more about their program for adopted teens at MTBA.com.

Labels: adoption rights, biological_parents, fathers

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The sponsor of the bill says it's a common-sense measure to help children of single parents. Focus on the Family says the bill is a back-door effort to legalize adoption by gay couples. Read more online.

Labels: legislation, adoption rights, parents

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The government of Ireland has proposed a new referendum addressing the rights and protection of children. The seven-point amendment includes new adoption clauses.

"The amendment will allow for the adoption of children who have been in care for a substantial period of time... It will also ensure that all children are eligible for voluntary adoption..."

The referendum also provides for strict liability in crimes against children. Read more at Ireland.com.

Labels: international, adoption rights

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It's not a statistic we like to hear, but we can't ignore the fact that each year about 750,000 teenagers become pregnant. The adoption support group Moms ALIVE (Adoptive Life is Very Exciting) travels to high schools and talks to teens about adoption, in an attempt to remove some of the stigmas associated with adoption.

"'They have a very 1950's image; they typically think of adoption as completely out of their hands. A social worker comes in, takes the baby, places the baby in the arms of a couple they've never met, and they don't know anything about the child or what happens to the child.'"

The organization currently makes presentations in about 35 Middle Tennessee high schools. Read more at Tennessean.com.

Labels: adoption rights, teenage pregnancy

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New legislation in India would give equal rights to adoptive mothers. Until now, when a married couple adopted a child, only the father was listed as the child’s guardian.

The proposed amendment to the 120 year-old Guardians and Wards Act, 1890, includes the mother along with the father to be appointed as guardian, making the process gender neutral.

The parliamentary standing committee on law and justice, which is examining the bill to amend the existing laws, is unanimous in its acceptance of the Personal Laws (Amendment Bill, 2010, introduced in the Rajya Sabha in April. [Source: The Hindustan Times]

Prior to the amendment, a mother had no rights over an adopted child if, for some unfortunate reason, her husband passed away.

 

Labels: international, adoption rights, mothers

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