interracial adoption
Interracial adoption means placing a child who is of one race or ethnic group with adoptive parents of another race or ethnic group, usually through the public child welfare system. The most recent estimates, which include international adoptions, found that 8% of adoptions were interracial.I've always known I wanted to adopt. It was just something I've always "felt". As a child, I was no stranger to adoption. My parents adopted my brother when he was five and one of my closest friends was adopted. My husband & I decided we wanted more than one child and had thought we would adopt a few children over the course of several years. Hearing this, our caseworker suggested siblings and we thought it was a great idea. We ended up adopting a multiracial sibling group of three children that had been in foster care for a number of years. At the time we finalized, they were 5, 7 & 12. Adopting more than one child at the same time - children that have struggled through stressful times, has not always been easy. I've been known to say that it's not for the faint of heart. But I've never regretted my choice and I can't imagine my life without them. Going through their struggles with them, side by side, has helped strengthened our bond as a family. Adopting across color lines has been debated and measured and there are some very strong opinions one way or the other. The fact is the as many as 8% of the children adopted in the US are adopted into families of differing skin tones. The term "color blind" is just obscured. We are creating families that are color conscious. My three year old is VERY aware that her skin is different that her siblings. One mother intent on adopting says this:I'm in an interracial marriage (I'm black and my husband is white)and we want to adopt. It irritates me on both sides that a magazine would only site black people as the opponents to transracial adoption when there are all types of colors that oppose... It irritates me that some people in my own race believe that it's better for these kids to have no family rather than a white family. These kids just want to be loved for who they are, they dream of having families. It doesn't seem right that some people would sacrifice what's good for these kids (and it is better for them to have a family)because they have problems with their own selves. Nobody's going to thank those people for keeping them in foster care or orphanages. Me? I'd rather for a girl/boy -whether they are international or domestic- find a loving family (regardless of race) that loves them for who they are and aren't trying to "save" them or expect them to be thankful that they adopted them. People tend to forget that they're adopting children, not things, and the kids are the most important. That's my .02
The heart of these individuals is one of love for children. Open your heart to a child in need:
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