Why White People Adopt Black Children

By RACHEL GARLINGHOUSE

African Americans have every reason to be suspicious of white people adopting black babies. From slavery to unethical medical experimentation to Jim Crow laws and more, history demonstrates that white people haven’t always been very kind to people of color, to say the least. As an English teacher, I read many books, and I can recall the numerous titles that talked about whites using slave children as entertainment at dinner parties while the children”s black parents looked on, powerless to stop the disgusting circus, knowing that at any moment, their kids could be sold to the highest bidder, stripped forever from their biological parents.

As an adoptive mom to two black children, and thus, the matriarch of a transracial family, I can testify that white privilege, prejudice, and stereotypes against black people still exist despite the number of people who claim to be colorblind. In addition to racial prejudices, my family is sometimes treated as second-class because we came together through adoption instead of biology. We have been asked horrendously nosy questions: Why didn’t you want your own kids? Are your girls real sisters? Why didn’t their birth mothers love them? I have been stopped in restaurants, airplanes, bathrooms and stores by strangers trying to figure out what’s up with my family.

Once I was preparing to take a weight lifting class at my gym when a black man in his sixties approached me and asked if the little girl I carried in with me every day was my child. I said, “Yes.” He said, “Is she really your child?” “Yes,” I said, growing irritated. Then he asked in a sincere tone, “Why didn’t you adopt one of your own kind?”

I have been asked the “why do white people adopt black babies?” question many times from people of various ages and races. Even little kids look back and forth between my daughters and me and ask, “Why are they brown?” It’s hard for me to respond, mainly because I”m often caught off guard by these questions and because there is no right answer that will satisfy their curious minds. I am not an adoption professional with a title, but I can share with you from experience and research some possible answers to the “why.”

First, there aren’t enough black, adoptive couples willing, able, or available to adopt black children. Look on any major adoption agency’s website under “waiting families,” and you’ll see what I mean; the couples smiling back at you are predominantly white. The reasons for this are debatable, complicated and numerous, ranging from socioeconomic disparity to cultural norms to familial beliefs and traditions. And, despite what some may believe, black birth mothers sometimes choose white parents to adopt their children, even when there are available black couples.

Second, while there are way more white couples who say they want to adopt white children only there are approximately 24 white couples available to every white child available for adoption some of us don’t care what color the child is. When we started our first adoption process, our social worker told us that out of more than 20 families waiting to adopt, only two were open to adopting a black child. Two. Our hearts ached. I believe some families, like ours, realize that ultimately, they want to be parents, and the child’s race is not a reason to say “no” to a child who needs a home.

Third, non-traditional family structures are far more acceptable than ever before, and this holds true for transracial adoptive families. You have celebrities to thank. Like it or not, celebrities, who often live their lives in front of the paparazzi and in the pages of gossip magazines, TV shows and blogs, set standards for our society, and one that’s become a reoccurring meme is that of the white celebrity adopting a child of color. Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt, Sandra Bullock, Tom Cruise and Madonna all adopted transracially, making the transracial adoptive family, while still unique, seem much more common. And when it seems more common, people are more likely to accept it and some of them are likely to follow suit.

Ultimately, I think my girls’ birthmothers deserve respect for the decisions they made. They are both educated, caring women who chose us to raise their daughters. Was race a factor in their decision?  Perhaps. But every mother I know, regardless of race, wants opportunities, security, and love for their children. Color doesn’t decide who can and cannot provide those things.

Personally, my motivation to be open to adopting a child of any race came from my belief that God is ultimately in charge. We were educated on transracial adoption, and we live and work in diverse communities. Additionally, we travel often, enjoying the experiences of learning about other races and cultures. We also trusted that if the child’s birth mother felt we were the best parents for her child, we would respect and honor that decision, regardless of the child’s skin color.

Now, how do I explain that in a nutshell to a nosy stranger?

I do not think every adoptive family is prepared to adopt a child of another race. When parenting children of color in a transracial family, love simply is not enough. I”ll repeat. Love is NOT enough. Research on transracial adoptees demonstrates time and time again that transracial parenting is a unique task one that must be carried out with education and intention in order to raise confident, secure children.

Each morning when I wake up, I don’t think, “I’m going to get my adopted black kids out of bed.” My day looks much like any other mother’s: meals, play time, work, errands, chores, diaper changes, tantrums, and tickle fights. My girls are “my own” despite the questions we are often asked or the stares we encounter. Our motivation to adopt and to accept a child of any race is, despite the complexity of race and adoption in America, quite simple: I wanted to be a mother to the child God had for us.

Rachel Garlinghouse is the proud mother of two brown babies. She is a freelance writer and college writing teacher. Read more about her family at White Sugar, Brown Sugar.

Editor’s Note: Newsweek’s The Daily Beast ran an equally compelling story about an African American family that consistently catches all kinds of grief when they’re out in public with their adopted white daughter. In his piece, writer Tony Dokoupil notes that “persistent double standards mean that African-American parents are still largely viewed with unease as caretakers of any children other than their own or those they are paid to look after.” Click here to check out “What Adopting A White Girl Taught A Black Family About Race In the Obama Era.”

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Denene Millner

Mom. NY Times bestselling author. Pop culture ninja. Unapologetic lover of shoes, bacon and babies. Nice with the verbs. Founder of the top black parenting website, MyBrownBaby.

135 Comments

  1. Great post! We get comments from people now and then….but mostly positive. Sometimes you just have to have some fun with it! hahahaha!

  2. I really enjoyed this piece. I was very pleased to hear Rachel say that she and her husband purposefully live and work in diverse areas so that their girls are exposed to lots of different kinds of people and families. Going over to check out her blog now!

  3. Very well put. Thank you!

  4. This is a great post. The fact is that is not easy for agencies to find homes for Black Children awaiting adoption. My sisters and I were lucky; not only we were we adopted at ages the are considered undesirable (I was 3, and my sisters were 5 and 7), we are biological sisters and had a greater chance of being split up than we did of being adopted together. I am more concerned with domestic adoption than with the race of those families adopting children. My husband and I are looking to expand our family and are discussing adoption. If and when we do begin the process, we will be looking to adopt a black child.

  5. It’s so great to hear Rachel address this topic from her own experience. It’s clearly not a decision to be made lightly, to gain brownie points, or to follow a trend. Raising a transracial family is not for wimps. Thanks for your candidness.

  6. I am an adoptive mom in reverse-an AA woman who adopted her white, foster daughter. I get asked this same question all the time and i too consider it nosey and time consuming to give a complete answer. I went into foster care with rose colored glasses on and really got a rude awakening. All I was concerned about was taking care of the kids in my home. It has been a real leaarning experience but one in which I have grown leaps and bounds in my walk with God as a mom and a woman.

    • You go girl. As a (politically incorrect white male) I am glad there are people like you.

    • I always thought about adopting a black child. (My husband and I are white, with one white child)

      Everyone around me is an interracial couple, with my child being the only white one. I think black is so beautiful. I think cultures are beautiful. I wish we had more culture in our home and family. I’m almost envious that everyone around me has that, but I’m also happy to be surrounded by it. If I never get to adopt, at least i know my child will still be raised with interracial friendships.

      Then I ask myself, is this wrong of me? I want to adopt, but I don’t want to adopt white.

      I would be so lucky to have children of multiple races in my home. I also feel that I have enough interracial families around me to help any of my children feel like they belong.

      I am not sure if I should be ashamed of myself for this. I want to adopt for what’s on the outside. Is this greedy of me?

      • I came across your comment today and feel as though I could have written it myself. I have one white son, live in an urban, diverse community, and deeply want to adopt a child of color from our city, St. Louis. If you don’t mind my asking, what did you choose?

      • Your comment is absurd.

        Because you’re ‘white’ you think you have ‘no culture’?

        How laughable.

        Everyone has culture, but recognizing it is like recognizing one’s own accent. British people don’t think they speak with an accent, they think you speak with an accent, just like you think others around you have culture, but they might think that you do.

        In fact – ‘racial diversity’ is a very short term step towards cultural homogeneity.

        When cultures mix, after about 2 generations, there’s nothing left of either. Just McDonald’s and Starbucks.

        • I read the book, “waking up white.” and you are right. Most white people do not think they have a culture. This book opened my already open eyes to the extent of white privilege and how white people cannot see it because it’s always the way things have been. I highly recommend the book to any white person wanting to learn and expand their knowledge of race, culture and how to break the cycle of white people being elephants that inadvertently step on others.

  7. I’m Rachel, the author. 🙂 Thank you for all your lovely comments and thoughts. If any of you have any adoption questions or need support, you can e-mail me at whitebrownsugar@hotmail.com or visit my blog and leave me a comment.

  8. While I am writing this in the background are the last children I have adopted .total children 14. We started as foster parents and kept all that were up for adoption. When children need a stable home color was not an issue with us, can we do it was the main issue. We have Biracial children and exposing them to their other half was and is very important.Love is not enough but it is a start.We need more AA families to open their hearts to a child waiting for a good home. Times were not that easy but well worth it……Ireta and her Crew

  9. Great post! A child is a child regardless of race. How could anyone who truly wants to become a parent say no to a child because of the color of their skin? I will never understand that. Your lives are richer for embracing these beautiful blessings that you have been given

  10. Excellent article, as usual Rachel!

  11. I love the fact that someone is willing and able to adopt a child no matter the race! So kudos to you for doing that… I get asked if we adopted our youngest child who is very light compared to the rest of us, it is all a very irritating process, questions and all the sort…

  12. Great article and right on. I know a family that has a child with Autism and many times strangers will ask why their child acts the way he does, Nick simply hands them a small business type card that says. “My child has Autism and his condition causes him to……etc.”

    I suggest the same for adoptive parents. This eliminates the need to constantly explain to strangers (not that you have to) why you have interracial kids. You can take one of two approaches to this situation, react or act. You can get angry and blow them off since it’s none of their business in the first place or take the opportunity to educate them. I suggest the latter.

    Mike

    • what an interesting idea. I will have to try that. because with small children in tow, it is often very difficult to adequately answer these types of questions. Usually, I feel like I end up saying something less precise or helpful than I would like simply because I am distracted by my {loud} children.

  13. Thanks again for being a voice for adoptive parents of Black children. It has been really encouraging for me to hear your take on things. Well-written. I also liked your post about how incredibly frustrating it is to find brown baby dolls, cards, etc. http://whitesugarbrownsugar.blogspot.com/2011/08/frustrating-
    to-say-least-white-mama-of.html
    Honestly this problem is just shameful. I have also noticed that the brown dolls are often not “too brown” and really never have curly hair. What’s up with that??

  14. Andi, girl I hear you! I wrote a letter to the creators of the LaLa Dolls. The only AA doll had blond, STRAIGHT, hair. Ummmm….ok. I mean, if when my daughter gets older she wants blond straight hair, that’s her choice. But right now she’s a little girl with natural hair, and I think toy makers should support kids of all colors, not just white kids!!!

  15. Andie, girl I hear you! I wrote a letter to the creators of the LaLa Dolls. The only AA doll had blond, STRAIGHT, hair. Ummmm….ok. I mean, if when my daughter gets older she wants blond straight hair, that’s her choice. But right now she’s a little girl with natural hair, and I think toy makers should support kids of all colors, not just white kids!!!

    • Rachel, you have got to be joking!? Blonde? Shouldn’t the point be to represent the largest group possible? Just seems like bad marketing, among other things….

      • There are black people with blond and/or straight hair. When I hear/read white people commenting/complaining about diversity, I usually find that these people are still operating within conditioned stereotypes of Blackness.

        The main problem with people in support of transracial adoption, specifically white parents with black children is that the socialization of ALL Americans is White Supremacy. If white people want to adopt black children, there needs to be intense and EXTENSIVE psychological and historical training in an effort to dismantle the conscious and subconscious biases inherent in ALL American white people.

        As a black child raised by white parents in one of the whitest states, one would think I had an ideal or better upbringing than my biological siblings who remained in abject Jamaican poverty. My adopted parents, before they adopted me, lived in The Gambia, and NOT AS missionaries. They spoke Wollof and Mandinka, ate and cooked the food, and immersed themselves in Gambian culture. Years later, they moved to Jamaica and adopted me. They worked with cooperativesn on the island for years. We moved to the states in 1987 and they maintained more friendships with black people than white.

        Furthermore, my mom was highly skilled in doing my 4a hair. If you don’t know what that term means, you’re not ready to adopt a black child. She would travel into ” The Hood” to purchase my beauty products and even put my hair into locs, without assistance.

        Now, it seems like I’m praising them, and I do give them credit for sincerely trying, but nothing replaces Blackness raising Blackness. Regardless of them trying to instill self pride and esteem, I HATED being different. I HATED being black. I HATED that I wasn’t as “pretty” as the white girls. White parents can do a lot for black kids: clothe them, house them, love them, etc. However, white parents CANNOT protect black children from the overt and subtle evils of White Supremacy. I was not less than my white counterparts, physically, intellectually or otherwise. Yet, American children are inundated with constant a message: white people are superior to black people. This can be seen in a multitude of ways.

        Whether or not you observe a religion, mainstream American Christianity portrays a white Jesus even though the geographical location of his birth is of black and brown origin. This imagery provides a powerful conscious and subconscious message: white people are your savior and a white person is your God. This message complicates the black psyche. Especially when historically and spiritually Colonialism, racism, slavery, etc. have demonstrated the opposite to black people across the globe.

        Also, American curriculum highlights the historical perspective of The West usuallybbeginning in the Middle Ages. However, the contributions of black people are thousands of years older. Africa had the first civilations, language, music, etc. Why is it that human accomplishment is mainly attributed to Europe and black people are taught that they came from slaves? Presently, why do we use such pejorative term like “third world” and “developed”. These are the subtleties of racism. These are the reasons why little black children chose and continue to choose the white doll. Again, if you don’t know what I’m referring to, you’re not ready to adopt black children.

        In conclusion, black people face a reality that is separate and unique from white America. This “feeling” of blackness, our soul, our epigenetic trauma, and our collective consciousness cannot be duplicated outside of Blackness. I understand that children need homes, but there needs to be a reform of the cross-racial adoption system. White parents need to spend years, not weeks or months preparing for the great task of raising black children. Being black in America is a tremendous feat within the context of systemic racism. What complicates matters the most though, are white parents trying to make a difference in black lives by adopting them, but not owning their learned racism. Cross-racial adoption is a research worthy dichotomy in that the group who benefits and unconsciously perpetuates white supremacy are raising children who are subjugated, disenfranchised and oppressed by the group to which their parents belong. How far have we moved from the plantation?

        • Very nicely stated… I’m AA and I fully agree.

        • @kamisha I agree with you 100%. Well stated. When it comes to teaching the black child of their true heritage all the way to the fact that we are the True Israelites, Gods choosen people. How can you teach me to be something or someone you are not. White People have this thing where when they do things mentioned in this article like adopt a black child, they need to give a explanation or lie to themselves about there true motives. Then to share how the parents thought they were good fits doesn’t sound any better or credible. They were not stable (in whatever way mentally/financially) to want to raise children they gave birth to what makes you think they have enough sense to make the best choice of where the child should be raised. It’s shallow to say well we can financially raise a black child, but you will never be able to instill in that child confidence to the degree that a black family or black people could provude. That’s an excuse! I don’t know what pleasure white people get out of doing acts like this but it’s sick and insulting. Your not a hero, your not being led by God. God is not the author of confusing and that’s what you are doing confusing a child, that will eventually learn who they are Jesus name. White people were not Kings and Queens how can you speak of instilling anything in our rich culture. You can’t. I pray for these babies.

  16. Rachel,
    Great post. I’m a single mom who adopted transracially. My son is 9 now and came home at 9 months from foster care. We’ve been very lucky with negative comments – they have been few and far between. And when I do get them my answer is usually – he is my son and that is all you need to know. We are open out him being adopted and he explains it to his friends the way he sees fit. But I truly believe that this little boy was meant to be mine. There is a reason we adopt however we adopt and that is because that is where are children are. They may have been born to different mothers or have different ethnicicties or cultures, but they were born to be ours and we were lead to them. Good luck with your girls. God Bless

  17. This is a great piece- delve deeper! I dont understand the god references….not a religious person….but everything else was on point.

  18. I love the line: Each morning when I wake up, I dont think, “Im going to get my adopted black kids out of bed.” My day looks much like any other mothers: meals, play time, work, errands, chores, diaper changes, tantrums, and tickle fights. My girls are “my own” despite the questions we are often asked or the stares we encounter. Our motivation to adopt and to accept a child of any race is, despite the complexity of race and adoption in America, quite simple: I wanted to be a mother to the child God had for us. That is so true. How many times have you been told what a great service it is of you to adopt a black child? You gotta laugh at peoples ignorance.

  19. @Jon—so many adoptive parents are held up as saints for adopting. Adopting isn’t about looking good to others or “saving” a child. It’s about people wanting to be parents, kids who need homes, and the two come together. I can’t count the number of times people have said our kids are “so lucky” to have us. How funny! I thought we were the lucky ones!

  20. The idea that my kid was “meant to be mine” and not his first mom’s is not something I think is true though. You say, “I wanted to be a mother to the child God had for us.”
    I would consider your god quite a cruel one to allow a mother to grow and bond with a child, and then have to give that child away. For whatever reason. And certainly if you, the writer believes it was some sort of master plan for this child to go through so much suffering to end up with you? that I dont get at all.

  21. Thanks for the article. I suppose my biggest frustration was that I assumed that white couples were starting to adopt black children because it’s the latest fad made popular by celebrities. It’s great that you pointed out that “love is not enough” in order for couples to raise a child of another race. It’s so important to educate children on their heritage. It’s the core of who they are and whether we like it or not…it’s how the world sees them. I would much rather an african american child find a loving home no matter what race instead of spending a lifetime in an orphanage or foster care, and I’m glad that white couples are stepping up to fill in the gap where honestly we as african americans sometimes fail as long as it’s done for the right reasons because if the motivation is wrong then the child may be worse off.

  22. @Anna I do not believe my children were created to be mine, nor do I believe that God wants children separated from their biological family members. However, I do respect the choice that my children’s birth parents made. They decided they couldn’t/shouldn’t parent their girls for reasons I obviously won’t disclose here. When I say I was ready to parent the child God had for us, I meant just that. At the point in time when my girls’ birth parents decided on adoption, we were available to adopt. The girls’ birth parents made the difficult choice to terminate their parental rights and give us their children. I do believe God’s hand was in the midst of that difficult decision. I continue to see God’s grace in our girls’ adoptions. Adoption is very complicated. VERY. Perhaps this will be a new article for MBB! 🙂

  23. Thanks for this post. As a Filipina mother (married to a white guy) to a brown baby boy, I have gotten similar questions, lots of looks especially when the whole family is together, and thinly veiled questions about my son.

    I think that this is a good beginning to a longer discussion about white class privilege and the expense that goes into the business of adoption (because it is big business) and how that might exclude families of color (or lower income whites for that matter) who want to adopt but cannot afford it. Many families of color in the U.S. have informally adopted children but haven’t gone through the necessary paperwork and legalities to make it “official” so I’m not convinced that it is as black and white as “people of color don’t want to adopt black children.”

    I think your post brings up many issues that those pursuing adoption reform want to see addressed including class/race privilege, inequities in the foster care system that lead to a disporportionate number of children of color being removed from homes, and lack of resources for birth mothers who may want to parent their children but feel that they cannot.

    It’s a complicated and multifaceted issue as all things related to race tend to be but I wholeheartedly agree with you that love certainly isn’t enough.

  24. It sounds like you have a beautiful family and are a wonderful mother. I just want to add a few points. The issue regarding African American kids and same-race placement is less a shortage of African American families wanting to adopt, and more the desire of all adoptive parents, African American included, to adopt infants. Since many African American children become available for adoption through the foster care system, they are more likely to be older as well as overrepresented among kids waiting for adoption for extended periods of time, or who age out of the system. I think this is important to note, because there is a misperception that African Americans don’t adopt, even though they (we) are more likely to adopt than other ethnicities. We need to support and encourage all potential adoptive parents to be more open to adopting older, and we also need to address social ills (poverty, mental health issues, addictions) that lead to so many kids being in foster care.

  25. This is a fantastic article! I grew up with two white parents, (two of my older brothers were their biological children), and then they adopted me and my sister. Growing up was not as difficult as many people made it out to be. I always had diverse friends, in reality, the comments made from other Black people about my parents, are what hurt the most; not white.

  26. Although I never though of why a white couple would adopt black children, I enjoyed reading your explanation. I think it is as common as you explain it to be (per the celebrities influences) as well as how acceptance has progressed in some areas through the years. God bless you for just wanting to adopt children without color being such a concern. I pray that you all are happy.

  27. While your reasons for adopting a black child sounds truly noble, the reality is that, your money, status and class in racist American still allows you to buy our children just like the slave masters brought and sold our children years ago. Most of the agencies that place African American children are white run agencies, they determine adoption criteria, often denying eligible black families the right to adopt black children, in favor of placing them with you. Part of a continuing systemic effort (colonizer mentality) to undermine the growth and vitality of the black community. So, I have good reason to distrust even the most well meaning white persons when it comes to adopting children of color. This is a strategically instituted programme of adopting out our children (but relatively few black parents are permitted to adopt white children) which serves only to further gentrify and assimalate black youth towards anglo american culture and away from a healthy identity as African American. Even the slave master favored those blacks that were more like him in appearance and behavior. Few white adoptive parents fail to teach the black adoptive child their history, culture or embrace their identity as black. Many white adopted parents have no black friends, and have no interest in learning about or teaching the child their cultural background. Causing some children to lack a healthy self esteem. How can children of color develop a healthy self esteem, when clearly there is and elephant in the room that is being ignored. Other white adoptive parents exchange the child’s identity for a false colorless identity. If you were truly color blind then you would be able to love them as black children, culture and all. I see many white parents that adopt who don’t even take the time to learn to take care of the black child’s hair like they do their own. Thus, the child runs around looking like an unkempt caricature instead of looking like a well groomed black child. This makes the child stand out and prone to become a target of teasing and non acceptance among their black peers and white children alike. Thereby isolating the child in your “colorless environment” is a denial of the fact that God made them Black, endowed with different physical characteristics and cultural heritage. It is also a denial of their fundamental right to to a healthy and mature self image as a black person. Living in isolated all white communities further subjects them to the potential of childhoods filled with mental, emotional and physical abuse, which occurs right under your very noses and should be considered neglect. By ignoring the realities of the racist world in which we live parents are not only not prepared to deal with racial harrassment the child will likely endure, they fail to talk about it or help the child learn what to do in those situations. Instead of embracing and celebrating their differences, many simply choose to ignore the parts of the child that are not like themselves. Similarly slaves masters used some of the same tactics to stripped African slaves of their culture and identity.

    Ultimately the underlying message being sent is that there is something wrong with being black and so we had to take you into the white world and make them one of us for you to be ok in your eyes. Very few white adoptive parents ensure that their black child has a diversity of friends, social situations and influences in their life. As a result, some kids rebel in teen years by simply walking away from the adoptive family in anger. Others become disfunctional developing unhealthy self images and full of self loathing.
    Only when I see adoptive parents embracing and celebrating the whole child cultural , physical differences as well as, striving to develop healthy children with their self esteem and pride in tact will I be comfortable with inter racial adoptions.

    • As a transracial adoptee I see myself as the exception to all the points that imply why a white person adopts a black child. I am a deep brown black and very proud of my black skin, heritage, and culture because of how my parents raised me. I understand the white guilt, history of slaves and slave owners, and look at my parents and know that is not why I am their daughter. Your post is disheartening because you are playing into the role that looks down on adoption. African american children aren’t being adopted in general whether its a black family or white family. I asked my black friends would they adopt and the most common answer is: No, I want to have my OWN kids. So what does that say about the community? I’m not saying a white family is better but their are many reasons why black families don’t adopt that should also be addressed. Although you applaud the white parents that do right by your standards it’s almost lost with your previous post where you say: “Only when I see adoptive parents embracing and celebrating the whole child cultural , physical differences as well as, striving to develop healthy children with their self esteem and pride in tact will I be comfortable with inter racial adoptions.” So instead of looking down at these mixed families try encouraging- offering hair tips. At 21 years old having white parents hasn’t made me less black but a role model to young families that are just starting this journey.

    • I agree completely, I feel IF YOU WANT TO ADOPT A BLACK CHILD, One of the parents SHOULD BE BLACK or whatever that childs ethnicity is. We live in a world of FORCED WHITE PRIVILEGE, We see White Countries STICKING their noses in other countries to steal resources under the guise of helping, we see African nations who the US AND UK governments (OWNED BY BANKS AND CORPORATIONS) making sure that corrupt people are in charge. To ensure the money flows to WHITE CONTROLLED CORPORATIONS. We see these corrupt governments SELLING BLACK CHILDREN who are orphaned due to “white privilege” from said nations and we see here in America the continued Social and Mental abuse Black people are forced to exist in, and then we see a FAKE BLACK MAN CHOSEN AS PRESIDENT TO HIDE THE INEQUALITIES and dismiss the unconstitutional program known as white privilege. Black Americans have been shit on so long that they start thinking like their captors, we see Black people join the military THAT IS THE STRONG ARM OF A RACIST NATION. All because white people don’t want to give up their privilege. They feign equality and would never want an America which is truly EQUAL. We see the CIA (documented) bring in Crack to continue the destruction of black people, We see a Media that portrays Black men and women in every negative light as well as well as social programming that makes Black women so ashamed of who they are that they spend hundreds of dollars a month to Wipe the Blackness out of their Hair and Skin or Black men shave their heads (think about how many “brothers” you see with naturals, Chris Rocks documentary “Good Hair” is an example of this). Black American is now White America, Look at our president, How he distances himself FROM ANY REAL TALK ABOUT BLACK AMERICAN CONDITIONS, he says “STOP COMPLAINING” and everythings not that bad, MORE PSYCHOLOGICAL PROGRAMMING. Infact if he wasn’t half white HE WOULD NOT OF BEEN SO ACCEPTABLE TO SO CALLED LIBERALS. I have more respect for White racists than the Liberals who support the same system and hide their privilege behind “house niggers”. The only reason you adopt black children is BECAUSE DUE TO YOUR WHITE PRIVILEGE YOU HAVE THE INCOME AND “PROTECTION OF YOUR COMPLECTION” to provide the opportunities. Ever wonder why most black people who succeed in US AND UK never say anything about these racist systems? Obama sells his soul FOR MONEY AND IN MY OPINION HE HAS SET BLACK PEOPLE BACK DECADES IN ACHIEVING TRUE EQUALITY. All these are the truths CRITICAL THINKING BLACK PEOPLE and CRITICAL THINKING PEOPLE OF ALL RACES ARE AWARE OF. IF you want to help Black children, STOP SUPPORTING RACIST GOVERNMENTS AND SYSTEMS THAT REINFORCE WHITE PRIVILEGE. We can TAKE CARE OF OUR OWN KIDS if you stop denying our self susstenance BY ENFORCING WHITE PRIVILEGE. I dated a women who was raised by a white couple, she now doesn’t speak to them and has a mistrust of white people. Non of her parents friends were Black and she told me she always felt like an outcast, after working her way through college she began to see WHAT THE TRUE REASONS her crack mother gave her up were all about. If you want a world of EQUALITY STOP USING YOUR WHITE PRIVILEGE AND MAKE A STAND LIKE TIM WISE DOES. I also went to school with a black man who was raised by a white couple, HE HAD A DISDAIN FOR BLACK PEOPLE. WE don’t need you to abduct our children, We need you to stand up to YOUR GOVERNMENTS AND NEIGHBORS AND STOP THE SYSTEM IN THIS WORLD THAT DEMONIZES AND STEALS FROM US. We need you to stop using “HOUSE NIGGERS” TO JUSTIFY your privilege, because they learned it is a good source of income. We don’t live in an equal world and YOU ARE CREATING A GENERATION OF BLACK PEOPLE WHO ARE CULTURALLY BANKRUPT AND are nothing more than white THINKING PEOPLE with Black skin. A white couple who adopts black children is not different than if a German Nazi couple adopted a Jewsih child. Stop LIVING IN YOUR DREAM WORLD ENFORCED BY THER RACIST MEDIA. Please stop KILLING OUR CHILDRENS MINDS, YOU ARE HURTING US. I doubt these words will sink through your PRIVILEGED MINDS. It is so much easier to succeed BASED ON A SYSTEM THAT REWARDS YOU FOR YOUR RACE and punishes does who are not white. And stop using House niggers to justify your SELFISH whims. Transracial Abduction, IS NOTHING MORE THAN MODERN SLAVERY only justified by selfish people who DON’T WANT TO END THEIR PRIVILEGE BUT PRETEND IT DOESN’T EXIST.

      • Your comment on here is overtly racist and uncalled for. What makes you think youre the only one who has ever been oppressed? I’m of Celtic descent. My ancestors were slaughtered by the catholic church and driven from their lands. We still celebrate a holiday in honor of this atrocity every march. They were segregated from American society we they first came to this country and were considered dirty undesirables. Today, as a white person I see constant prejudice. I have been denied jobs on the basis of my race, I have been socially ostracized, I have been threatened, and I have been looked upon with disdain and distrust. The idea of “preserving black culture” is absurd. You seriously believe that we should encourage segregation? That those who challenge the color lines should be ashamed of themselves? That I don’t know what prejudice is and cannot teach my children to love themselves without teaching them to adhere to racial stereotypes? Do you have the same fears about white children in black homes? Racism and prejudice goes all directions, and is just as hurtful to all people. To claim that white people are harming black children by being white is racist and wrong. Did you even listen to MLK when he spoke?

        • JumpingDjembe… you started off good. But you’re whole argument fell apart after about the second sentence. Prejudice may go in all directions… but Racism is not the same and does not have arrows pointing in 2 directions. Don’t have the time to get into the rest of your comments…. but just stick to the first sentence and you may be alright.

        • Why is a little bit of truth always downed played as racism, is it to shun those, who might speak it?

          All of this white parents taking black as their own, sounds like what the Bible says would happen to the lost ship of Israel, and I’m not refering to any “Israeli.” (J-w) person.

          • It is a matter in America that the total annihilation of African language, names, traditions, culture, religion, child rearing practices, marital status from an African perspective was stolen in the most horrify ways. The legacy of what was done many would like to ignore and day were beyond all that.

            Consider from 1619-1863 there was legalized slavery. Then from 1865-1876 there was a brief period where Africans now became African Americans through the 14th Amendment and citizenship those years were by far the most productive Blacks have ever known in this country if one studies the Reconstruction Era.
            From 1877-1967 there was the Jim Crow era with the last laws being overturned in 1967 Loving v. Virginia. An interracial marriage was still illegal in every southern state that previously rebelled. The Supreme Court threw out all those miscegenation laws.
            From 1967-2016 is what..Not even 50 years. Jim Crow existed to replace slavery in terms of controlling behavior, work, families, social standing, civil and political rights, education, religion, location of revidence and all done through fear and violence of domestic terror groups. The Country was determined that if it couldn’t impose slavery to also keep blacks out of white life, Jim Crow was the next best thing. Both political parties participated though the Democratic Party was primarily responsible for advocating slavery, instituting Jim Crow Laws, using the KKK as the enforcer of the status quo in the 20th century and the turmoil of the 60’s is also traced directly to the Democratic Party. The Republicans winked and nodded and did nothing after 1876 to prevent this.

            What does this mean? Black people know and remember how our kids were stolen right out of the arms of their mothers and sold never to be seen again. The kids sometimes killed if they were deemed unworthy by the master. Families torn apart. White families having black servants in their homes attending to their every need including raising the white family children. Black people have always had an aversive relationship with every system of government. Legal, political, social, educational, economical since the beginning because those systems were never intended to work on behalf of or to further along Black people but it was designed actually for Englishmen. Not Englishwomen. Just the men. That’s why it took 19 amendments for women to vote.

            Black people see white families easily adopting black children and while they want to be happy about it, there is a certain uneasiness about it. The same rules that make it easy for a white family to adopt a black child triples the difficulty for black adults to adopt those same children. Now I work in the field so I know. But I also am a researcher of history and teach it. White people many of them have good intentions but fail to understand why black people are often angry seeing a black child not in a black home.

            But are there not very many black homes? The same rules that make it easy for whites to become licensed triple the difficulty for black people. When I got my masters degree. I did a study on this. Welfare agencies do what they have always done. They do what’s easy. They do what the legislation sanctions which is what you see happening. Until we have honest discussions openly on race and our history’s past without sugar coating it and also validating the anger many blacks have, there will be a disconnect. There will be us and them. Not because we want it that way but because the systems that were put in place at the beginning make it so.

    • How many children have YOU adopted?

      Seriously? Where’s your data? Have you even been to an adoption agency? Have you heard of black social workers? MANY social workers are black, and many agencies FIRST try to recruit African-American families.

      And were you aware that with 95% of adoption agencies in the United States, it’s the BIRTH MOTHER who chooses the adoptive family?

      It’s time to lose the paranoia, my friend. It’s not that deep.

      Time and effort could better be spent in combating poverty, rape, incest, unsafe sex, all of which lead many birth mothers to choose an adoption plan.

    • @B. Lindsey~ Thank you for the response. I agree with some of your points because they are based on facts and not hearsay.

    • Well written……Well said

      K. Burke

    • I know this article is old, but as a black person trying to adopt; I find the adoption “BUSINESS” tends to favor white people over black people and I am seeing biological parents choosing white people over black people and even choosing gay white couples over black people. I chose to adopt thinking that black children needed a home and, as a black person, I could provide that home. I am finding that not to be the case. Adoption is a business and white people are now buying black people AGAIN via the adoption process.

  28. I want to applaud the many white adoptive parents who do take their children of color to black cultural affairs and provide a diversity of role models of color in toys, books and movies brought into the home. Big ups to the moms who sit down with their black girlfriends or coworkers and learn how to care for their child’s black natural or permed hair. You are loving your child of color into a healthy self identity as a person of color, worth and teaching them to be self confident to go out into the world and handle their business.

    • I am the mother of a beautiful African American little boy through domestic adoption. I do agree with much of what you said regarding the cultural needs of chdren in a transracial home. Love is not color blind. To be “color blind” is a huge disservice to my son. It is my role as a parent to teach him to be self-confidant and value the amazing aspects of him that make him unique. We seek out everything from books, music, toys, even Christmas ornaments depicting black faces. We celebrate his race, not try to ignore it. His Godmother and Godfather are African American and provide support to us. We are fortunate to live in a metro area that offers many resources. I would encourage all families that seek to adopt to take a strong look at their ability to provide the resources and role models a child will need (of all races) to develop a sense of self-worth. As parents, I dont intend for my child to stay tucked away in the suburbs feeling “lucky” to be in a white family. I want him to be an instrument of change who feels comfortable in both his familial and cultural community with the goal that the gap between the two stedialy shrinks. Now that our immediate family has grown to include multiple adopted children of different races, I am more than hopeful that blended families are a beautiful and normal occurrance that will inspire families of all races to come alongside their local communities to help parent amazing children. I also pray that there are stronger programs for birth/biological mothers to provide them the resources to parent if they so choose, so that they have tangible options. I am thankful to God and our birth mother every day. The fact that another mother suffers great loss so that I can parent is not something I take lightly. This is nothing shy of the greatest responsibility, and I owe it to our child to be intentional and humbled by this.

  29. “.. the reality is that, your money, status and class in racist American still allows you to buy our children just like the slave masters brought and sold our children years ago.”
    “Ultimately the underlying message being sent is that there is something wrong with being black and so we had to take you into the white world and make them one of us for you to be ok in your eyes. ”

    Would you have preferred if she left the black children in foster care and only went for white children? She noted that there were not that many black parents adopting in general. So those girls could possibly be sitting for years with no parents to take them in and love them. Is that a better situation?

  30. Wonderful post! My in-laws have three adopted sons who are black–and the youngest of them is now in college. The mind reels at the questions and looks she must have gotten 20 years ago. I applaud her–and you–for your courage, to put up with such a level of ignorance and disregard when all you wanted was a child. I hope the world is a kinder place when they decide to have children of their own.

  31. @B LIndsey,

    I agree with many of your points. It’s important that white families adopting black kids to many things. Take care of the kids’ skin and hair, which I do. TEach them about their race, which I do. Allow them opportunities to befriend kids of other races (besides white), which I do. Do not be colorblind (we do not pretend to be). The list goes on and on. But I will never be black—period, so yes, my children will always miss out on that—having a black parent. But, my daughters do have open adoptions with their birth families, so that is not taken from them.

    I want to know where you find your information on AA parents being denied entrance to adoption agencies. I have heard this before from a friend of mine, but still wasn’t provided research or information. Please share!

    The agency we worked with to adopt both our girls practically begs AA couples to apply and work with them, yet no one is stepping forward. This is an ethical, affordable agency (affordable in comparision to other agencies). The county we adopted from attempts to racially match AA children to AA couples—but it rarely happens.

    I do not believe, by default, that AA infants available for adoption are better off with AA parents because…in an adoption situation (domestic and voluntary), the biological mom is looking to provide her child with something (s) she cannot. She is obviously the same race or partially the same race as her biological child. That is not what is most important to her. She realizes that she wants her child to have X, which she cannot provide, so she places. We were able to provide our children things that their biological mothers wanted for them and that they could not provide at the time of their child’s birth. Race wasn’t one of them…because my daughter’s biological mother had the choice between an AA couple (who was not Christian) and us, who were. ONE reason she chose us was because she was certain she wanted her children with a Christian family.

    It is up to no person to tell my daughter’s first mother that she didn’t know what was best for her child. If she chose us for ANY reason, that is HER choice. To tell her it’s not good enough b/c the child doesn’t racially match us is incredibly disrespectful.

    Race matters. A lot. Love isn’t enough when adopting transracially, as I said in the article. But I do think white parents (or parents of any race) can successfully raise a child of another race—if they take the job seriously and do everything they can, with support and education, to raise a confident child.

    • @Rachel, my information is from my experience of many years of working in the child placement and adoption system, in a large metropolitan area of the US. I personally witnessed the inequalities that AA parents face when the seek to adopt children. Maybe because it has not been your reality, so it is hard to fathom. Many are found not qualified because of high debt to income ratio, living in ” high crime areas”, family members incarcerated, past history of arrest, etc. In addition, AA in the US still do not have full equality in many areas, most notably: salaries, education or housing. They are still the primary subjects of police arrest and are incarcerated at a higher rate than any other group despite statistics that show they are not committing the majority of the crimes in America.
      In addition, their communities often reflect the many socioeconomic conditions that have been continually been forced upon them by systemic and often racist policies, that keeps them marginalized. For example, the amount of illegal drugs and weapons that are permitted to flood into AA communities. Alcoholic substances like Malt Liquor, known to fuel violent tempers is only sold in the AA community. So, the playing field is still not level for AA in the area of adoption policies either.
      That’s why it upsets me to see comments on here like, AA don’t want to adopt AA children. AA have a long history of taking care of everyones children, even today how many AA or brown skin nannies do you see touting around children all day in your own home town. So, it is not because AA have no care or concern for children that they do not adopt in large numbers. Lets not just look at adoption as an isolated problem, it is connected to a whole host of other issues in the AA community.

      Yet, at the same time every day, we see a parade of various celebrities bringing home brown skin babies from all over the world. Yet some of them should not be anyones parent with their history of drinking, drugging and wilding out behavior. Lets make no mistake, their status, money and skin color has allowed them the privilege of collecting brown skin children from all over the world like travel trinkets.

      • T. Lindsey, as a woman of color period I consider your attack on Rachel heart wrenching. If she wanted to adopt a green child with yellow hair how that affecting you in any way shape or form. This woman adopted because of love and desire to become a mom, not recieve acknowledgement for rearing AA kids. Should the fact that Rachel is white disqualify her for raising children of color? No, it shouldn’t infact the the only thing that should disqualify her is her ability to love, cherish, educate and nurture her children. It’s said that we still live in a time where ignorance is still bliss in the AA society.

        • @ T. Wilson , As a Black woman and knowing the history of slavery, You can not tell me that this trend does not bother you. There is a mass of white people adopting black children because they love them! I will be the first to say that something is going on that we don’t know about. Adoption agencies put AA families thru a lot to adopt children. So before you all get on this site and say AA don’t wanna adopt get the facts.

      • I am in the process now and I agree; I am only able to meet the requirements because I have basically lived a sheltered life and was able to borrow the high amount to adopt. Most black people don’t have such clean lives and don’t have the ability to borrow a large amount of money to adopt. We are trying to raise a black child who has no home; we are not trying to be anyone’s hero which is the reason why I see white people adopting black children. My racist co-worker and his wife have a black child. The adoption agencies don’t seem to care who they approve to adopt a black child; they seem particular for white children though.

  32. Rachel (: Great article. Thank you for doing this!! I am getting ready to write a post on myths about domestic adoption. Enough is enough with peoples mis guided info. Take Care!!

  33. Im Black and I want to adopt Black children. Nobody wants Black children but I dont understand why White parents would want Black children. The stigmas and racismand things that Blacks go through in this country are things that Whites will never be able to grasp. It seems kinda akward when you got White parents trying to teach a Black male child how to make it in America. Plus, with that story about that Ethoipian girl who got beaten and starved to death by her White parents makes me question adoption. Children should never be seprated from their bio parents. This aint slavery anymore

    • I am of the opinion that if you can love a child and offer it a home where it will be taken care of financially and loved, you should be able to adopt a child. Whether you’re gay, straight, black, white, or purple polka dot. Your comment is really confusing.. first you say that you want to adopt black children then you say that children should never be separated from their bio parents.. Which is it?? And as far as the story about the Ethiopian child who was abused by her adoptive parents, there have been several stories about black adoptive parents who have abused their children too.. What about Cynthia Greenwood who forced her 12 year old adopted daughter to have an abortion after her biological son raped her? Does that mean that black people shouldn’t be allowed to adopt? Come on now.. There are messed up people of every race.. Adoption has nothing to do with slavery. I think that if i were in the system being bounced from place to place, i’d be happy with any family who loved me.

  34. People will never harm their exotic pets.

  35. My 19 yr old son’s best friend (since age four) is “biracial”. He was adopted by a “white” couple, who also happened to be in their 50’s when he was brought to them at four weeks old as a foster child. Bio mom was a “white” druggie and bio dad was a “black” prison inmate. How would he have been raised if he had stayed with bio parents like this? Instead, his “old white parents” raised him to be a patriotic, God-loving young man who has excelled at everything he has put his hand to. Sure, he had some times of questioning his situation, but with the love and support of his adoptive family, including five “white” older siblings, and the love and support of two life-long “white” (blue-eyed …eegads!) best friends, this young man has forged a path of success for himself. He is now a cadet at the academically elite and hard-to-get-into United States Air Force Academy. He could lead our military one day… The “whiteness” of this young man’s family and best friends did not damage his ability to become the remarkable young person he is. Get it people: Lets stop dividing ourselves by color, but instead unite with like-minded people of all “colors” and watch all our young people succeed. Let’s support GOOD homes for all children, regardless of the “color” of their parents.

  36. can somebody adopt me. i like to see this the people of the world do this

  37. Why on earth to Whites insist on adopting Black children? Your own race only accounts for 8% of the entire world and already has a below replacement birth rate but your own self hatred has you content with aborting and race mixing your people out of existence. ‘I’m proud of my brown mutts, I’m proud to support the genocide of my own people, aren’t i liberal and progressive’. Cultural Marxism = greatest experiment EVER.

  38. Amen Mama! For a variety of reasons, our love for our soon-to-be-adopted son faces many of the same battles (even though we happen to be the same color). We too share a love for him that crosses all boundaries & transcends all ignorant stares/questions from others.

  39. It’s a little unsettling to see more than a few people place their own racially charged agenda ahead of worrying about the children themselves.

    If one complains about a white person adopting a baby of another race, what would one prefer? That the baby remain in the system, be raised by the system without a singular stable home?

    Instead of taking the adoption for what it is at face value, and even giving the prospective parents the shred of a benefit of a doubt, some are determined to ignore the actual child in question in favor of spinning up a political narrative about racial tension, privilege, assimilation.

    Is the system fair? Nope, probably not. America itself is still full of racism and inequality. But while people argue and fight over that, the children still sit in the system and in foster care. In point of fact, there aren’t enough people adopting children… period. Theoretically, there should be zero orphans in the United States. There should be more than enough prospective families of every race and background to provide good homes for children in the system. Yet a shocking number of children are still left in the no-man’s land of foster care.

    There are many misleading and outright bad popular ideas that prevent children from having homes. People still hold to primitive concepts about magical connections between birth parents and children. People still unthinkingly assume that it is more “correct” to raise your own biological child over another child who needs a parent. Do a web search… you’ll find blogs devoted to advising people to never adopt, written by women who insist that children have a literally supernatural connection to their biological mother only. And they attack adoptive parents, calling them “fake parents” who “pretend” to be the mother and father of their adopted child.

    Bottom line: children having a stable home with lifelong parents should come first. Everything is is arguing about your politics.

  40. im from eritrea & still can’t understand why do white people adopt other race more then their own race. I could see if they adopt a european child, but not black american, ethiopian chinese etc. white people please just don’t adopt an eritrean, i well give u bad look…

    • where's yours?

      Seriously? The problem is not with the white parents, it’s with YOU. So you want white parents to just ignore children and leave them in orphanages because they are black? Where’s your adopted black child? What are YOU doing to help the children? Because if your only argument is culture…then you have a poor argument.

      You will give me a bad look? So scared……bring it on.

  41. I FIND IT VERY OFFENSIVE WHEN I SEE WHITE PEOPLE WITH OUR CHILDREN! THEY WEAR OUR BABIES LIKE A SHOW-PIECE. NOTHING MORE THAN A REPETITION OF WHAT WHITES HAVE BEEN DOING TO OUR PEOPLE SINCE THE TIME OF THE “SCRAMBLE FOR AFRICA”. THEY FLAUNT IT IN OUR FACES THAT THEY STILL FIND PLEASURE IN SEPARATING OUR FAMILIES AND BUYING AND SELLING OF OUR BABIES, ALL TOO REMINISCENT OF THE AUCTION BLOCKS.

    MANY WILL NOT DISCUSS THE CHILD MOLESTATION, ABUSE AND NEPOTISM THAT GOES ON IN ADOPTIVE FAMILIES. THESE PERVERTED PARENTS FEEL THAT BECAUSE IT’S “THEIR” CHILD/PROPERTY/POSSESSION THEY CAN DO WITH THE CHILD WHATEVER THEY WANT. YET THEY ARE STILL LOOKED AT AS SAVIORS OF “THE POOR LITTLE NEGROES”.

    TRUTH IS FAR TOO MANY BLACK >ARE>REMOVE<GIVINGLIED< ON ME AND ACCUSED ME OF CHILD ABUSE. I HAVE NEVER ABUSED MY CHILD. MY SON WAS USUALLY WELL BEHAVED AND RARELY NEEDED ANY SORT OF DISCIPLINE. HIS USUAL DISCIPLINE WAS ME VERBALLY LECTURING HIM ABOUT WHAT HE UNDERSTOOD AND WHAT WAS THE RIGHT THING TO DO. ONCE WHEN HE WAS 7 YEARS OLD AFTER PLAYING AT A FRIEND'S HOUSE, HE WALKED IN THE OUR HOUSE WITH SOMETHING IN HIS POCKET. I ASKED HIM TO SHOW ME WHAT HE HAD. HE IMMEDIATELY STARTED CRYING. HE SHOWED ME. IT WAS A CELL PHONE. SO I ASKED WHERE DID YOU GET IT? HE SAID HE TOOK IT HOME FROM HIS FRIEND'S HOUSE. I ASKED DID HE ASK IF IT WAS OK TO TAKE IT HE SAID NO. SO I ASKED WHY WAS HE CRYING HE SAID BECAUSE I STOLE IT. I SAID YOU KNOW THAT STEALING IS WRONG DON'T YOU? HE SAID YES. I SAID PUT OUT YOUR HAND HE DID. I SAID, I HAVE TO SPANK YOU SO THAT YOU CAN FEEL IT IN YOUR FLESH AND NEVER FORGET THAT IT'S WRONG BECAUSE EVEN THOUGH YOU SAID YOU KNOW IT'S WRONG YOU SEEM TO SOMEHOW FORGET. I TAPPED HIM IN THE PALM OF HIS HAND WITH MY HAND AND CONTINUED TO TELL HIM WHAT COULD HAPPEN IF HE DIDN'T CHANGE HIS WAYS. I TOLD HIM A TAP ON THE HAND IS NOTHING COMPARED TO HAVING TO SPEND TIME IN JAIL AND RUINING YOUR CAREER IN THE FUTURE. I TOLD HIM I WAS BEING VERY LENIENT ON HIM BECAUSE I ONLY WANT TO TEACH HIM RIGHT FROM WRONG. MY INTENT IS TO EDUCATE AND TO MAKE SURE YOU DON'T HEAD DOWN THE WRONG PATH. I TOLD HIM WHEN WE DO THE WRONG THINGS IT'S OUR RESPONSIBILITY TO MAKE THINGS RIGHT. I ASKED WHAT HE THOUGHT WOULD BE THE BEST THING TO DO. HE SAID, "I SHOULD RETURN IT". I SAID YES YOU WILL GIVE IT BACK BUT BEFORE YOU JUST GIVE IT BACK YOU MUST OWN UP TO WHAT YOU DID. YOU MUST CALL YOUR FRIEND AND HIS PARENTS AND LET THEM KNOW THAT YOU STOLE IT FROM THEM. YOU MUST TELL THEM HOW REMORSEFUL YOU ARE AND APOLOGIZE. YOU MUST ALSO TELL THEM THAT YOU HAVE LEARNED FROM THIS AND THAT YOU ARE WILLING TO ACCEPT ANY ADDITIONAL REPERCUSSIONS FOR YOUR ACTIONS. HE TOLD ME THAT HE THOUGHT IT WAS THE RIGHT THING TO DO AND THAT HE WANTED ME TO FORGIVE HIM. I ASKED IF HE THOUGHT I WAS TOO HARD ON HIM OR IF I WAS BEING MEAN. HE SAID NO MOMMY THIS IS THE RIGHT THING TO DO AND I'M SORRY. HE GAVE ME A HUG AND SMILED.
    THIS INSTANCE OF DISCIPLINE WAS CONSIDERED ABUSE BY HIS DAD AND HIS DAD'S NEW WIFE (DAD LATINO, NEW WIFE WHITE). I CALLED HIS DAD TO TELL HIM WHAT HAPPENED. I SAID OUR SON WAS CAUGHT STEALING AND THAT I CORRECTED HIM ON IT AND THAT I THINK YOU SHOULD TALK TO YOUR SON ABOUT STEALING. HIS DAD TALKED TO HIM BRIEFLY OVER THE PHONE AND I ASSUMED THAT WAS THE END OF IT. HIS DAD NEVER MENTIONED THE INCIDENT TO ME AGAIN. LATER THAT YEAR WHEN IT CAME TIME FOR SUMMER VISITATION WITH HIS DAD, WHILE HE WAS WITH HIS DAD,HIS DAD FILED A LAWSUIT AGAINST ME SEEKING CUSTODY AND ACCUSING ME OF CHILD ABUSE.
    I CALLED HIS DAD TO ASK WHAT WAS GOING ON AND HIS DAD PUT HIS NEW WIFE ON THE PHONE. SHE SAID I'M NOT ALLOWED TO TALK TO MY SON'S FATHER AND THAT I HAVE TO GO THROUGH HER FIRST. I TOLD HER I NEED TO TALK TO HIM REGARDING MY SON. SHE SAID I SHOULD CALL HER BACK. I CALLED BACK EVERY DAY UNTIL IT WAS TIME FOR MY SON TO BE RETURNED TO ME. EACH TIME I CALLED SHE HUNG UP IN MY FACE. WHEN IT WAS TIME FOR THEM TO RETURN MY SON THEY REFUSED. THEY KEPT HIM FOR ANOTHER MONTH AND HE WAS LATE STARTING SCHOOL. I WENT TO THE COURT TO ASK FOR THEM TO RETURN MY SON TO ME AND THE JUDGE SAID HE GRANTED EXTENDED VISITATION EVEN THOUGH SCHOOL WAS ALREADY STARTED. WHEN THEY FINALLY RETURNED MY SON TO ME. MY SON TOLD ME THEY HAD A LOT OF GROWNUPS ASK HIM QUESTIONS ABOUT ME. HE TOLD ME THEY ALSO VIDEO TAPED HIM AGAIN AND AGAIN UNTIL HE SAID THE RIGHT ANSWERS. I ASKED MY SON WHAT DID HE SAY ABOUT ME, HE SMILED AND SAID I LOVE YOU AND YOU'RE A GOOD MOMMY. I ASKED WHAT ELSE DID HE SAY. HE SAID THEY ASKED IF HE GOT SPANKINGS HE SMILED AND SAID ONLY IF I DO SOMETHING WRONG. I SAID DID THEY ASK YOU ANYTHING ELSE HE SAID HE COULDN'T REMEMBER THE REST.

    THIS THING WENT TO COURT WHILE I WAS LIVING OUT OF STATE. MY SON'S DAD LIVED IN FLORIDA AND MY SON AND I HAD BEEN LIVING IN NEVADA FOR 3 AND A HALF YEARS (WITH PERMISSION FROM HIS DAD AND THE COURTS IN FLORIDA). I WAS NOT PROPERLY NOTIFIED OF THE COURT DATE FOR THE HEARING SO I LOST TO A DEFAULT MOTION. THEY SENT ME LETTERS SAYING THAT I WOULD BE CHARGED WITH KIDNAPPING IF I DID NOT TURN OVER MY SON. I HAD TO FLY BACK TO FLORIDA TO DEFEND MYSELF. BY THE TIME THEY GAVE US A HEARING DATE TO REMOVE THE DEFAULT JUDGMENT MY SON'S DAD HAD MOVED MY SON TO TEXAS. WHEN I GOT TO COURT IN FLORIDA I WAS COMPLETELY UNAWARE THAT THEY MOVED.

    YET THIS WAS THE OCCASION IN WHICH THEY ACCUSED ME OF CHILD ABUSE. ALL OF HIS MEDICAL RECORDS SHOWED HE WAS HEALTHY. HE WAS AN EXCELLENT STUDENT WITH A VERY FUNNY VIBRANT OUT-GOING PERSONALITY. I WENT TO COURT TO CLEAR MY NAME AND HAVE CUSTODY RETURNED THE JUDGE SAID ALL OF MY SUPPORTING EVIDENCE WAS GREAT BUT THAT HE WOULD NOT OVERTURN THE RULING BECAUSE THEY MOVED MY SON TO TEXAS. I WAS NOT ALLOWED TO KNOW THE ADDRESS OR CITY SO THAT I COULD FLY TO TEXAS TO FIGHT FOR MY SON. THIS SYSTEM IS WICKED AND PURPOSELY SLIGHTED AGAINST BLACK PARENTS. I'VE SEEN MANY WHITE PARENTS TAP THEIR TODDLERS ON THE LEGS AND STILL BE CONSIDERED GOOD PARENTS YET IF A BLACK MOTHER TAPS HER SON ON THE PALM OF HIS HAND FOR STEALING SHE'S CONSIDERED ABUSIVE. HAVEN'T SEEN OR HEARD FROM MY SON IN 4 YEARS.

    • OKAY THIS THING TOTALLY RUINS FORMATTING AND SO IT SCREWED UP MY PARAGRAPHS LIKE THIS:TRUTH IS FAR TOO MANY BLACK >ARE>REMOVE<GIVINGLIED< ON ME AND ACCUSED ME OF CHILD ABUSE.
      ^UGH! ANYWAY READ THROUGH AND YOU'LL GET THE POINT.

  42. IF WHITE TRULY HAD NOBLE INTENTIONS THEY WOULD HAVE EXAMINED WHY THESE MOTHERS HAVE PUT THEIR CHILDREN UP FOR ADOPTION OR WHY THE CHILDREN WERE TAKEN FROM THEIR NATURAL PARENTS AND LOOKED TO RESOLVE THE ISSUE. IF STYLE OF PARENTING THEN YOU WOULD HAVE PAID FOR PARENTING CLASS, IF LACK OF EDUCATION YOU COULD HAVE FUNDED THAT. IF IT WAS BECAUSE OF POVERTY YOU COULD HAVE HELPED THE FAMILIES FINANCIALLY. BUT NO! Y’ALL SAW AN OPPORTUNITY TO DESTROY A BLACK FAMILY AND JUMPED ON THE OPPORTUNITY. A RETRO FASHION TREND A NEW “PET” NEGRO, A NEW FONDLING BUDDY(MANY ADOPT BECAUSE THEY ARE CHILD MOLESTERS WHO HAVEN’T BEEN CAUGHT). THIS ISN’T NEW IT’S AS OLD AS TRANSATLANTIC SLAVERY. BLACKS HAVE BEEN TOYS AND JEWELS TO WHITES SINCE THEY STOLE OUR ANCESTORS. THEY HAVE A SERIOUS HABIT OF STEALING BROWN PEOPLE FOR THEIR OWN AMUSEMENT. THE MOST HIGH GONE PUT A STOP TO ALL OF THIS MESS SOON ENOUGH. TO TAKE A CHILD FROM THEIR PARENT IS TO CUT A CHILD OFF FROM THEIR HERITAGE CULTURE AND IDENTITY. MANY ADULTS WHO GREW UP IN A ADOPTIVE HOME HAVE NO CLUE WHAT THEY ARE TALKING ABOUT BECAUSE THEY DON’T KNOW WHAT THEY HAVE MISSED. THE HERITAGE AND CULTURE YOU RECEIVE FROM YOUR BIRTH PARENTS CAN’T BE ATTAINED FROM A BOOK OR MOVIE OR FRIENDS. THE RAPPORT AND THE MANNERISMS AND IDEOLOGIES, THE HISTORY, THE BELIEFS, THE NATURAL LANGUAGE AND ACCENT AND VOCAL TONES, THE NATURAL NURTURE, THE FAMILY HONOR, THE GENETIC LEGACY, THE NATURAL INTIMACY AND CONNECTION OF PARENT TO NATURAL CHILD CAN NOT BE MIMICKED BY WHITE THIEVES/PURCHASERS WHO TELL YOU THAT THEY ARE YOUR NEW PARENTS.
    WHITES ADOPTING BLACKS IS A MICRO VIEW OF WHAT THEY DID WHEN THEY RIPPED APART FAMILIES BROUGHT OUR ANCESTORS HERE AGAINST THEIR WILL. THE FIRST THING THE DID WAS STEAL OUR IDENTITY. THEY FORCED US TO CHANGE OUR NAMES AND TAKE ON THEIR FAMILY LAST NAMES. THEY STOLE OUR LANGUAGE. THEY FORCED US TO LEARN TO SPEAK THE WAY THEY SPEAK. THEY STOLE OUR HERITAGE. NOW INSTEAD OF BEING THE UNIQUE AND ROYAL PEOPLE WE WERE CREATED TO BE AND ONCE WERE, WE ARE NOW FORCED TO BROWN LESSER VERSIONS OF THEM. THEY STOLE OUR BELIEF SYSTEM. INSTEAD OF BELIEVING IN THE CREATOR AS WE HAD KNOWN HIM FROM THOUSANDS OF GENERATIONS THEY FORCED CHRISTIANITY AND WHITE JESUS ON US. THEY MADE US WORSHIP THEIR FACE AND THEIR IMAGE ALL THE WHILE TELLING US OUR COLOR DIDN’T MATTER. THEY STOLE OUR CULTURE AND OUR LAWS AND FORCED US TO LEARN THEIR VERSION OF ETIQUETTE AND THEIR LAWS. THEY TOOK AWAY EVERY CONNECTION WE HAD TO OUR FORE PARENTS AND TAUGHT US TO WORSHIP THEIR FORE PARENTS THROUGH CIVICS, POLITICS AND AMERICAN AND EUROPEAN HISTORY CLASSES. IF YOU ARE A BLACK WHO HAS BEEN ADOPTED BY WHITES LOOK AGAIN AND KNOW WHAT HAS BEEN TAKEN FROM YOU! THERE ARE BLACKS WAITING TO ADOPT BUT AS I SAID BEFORE THIS SYSTEM PROMOTES REMOVING CHILDREN FROM BLACKS NOT GIVING CHILDREN TO BLACKS. YOUR WHITE SAVIORS ARE LIARS AND OPPRESSORS! YOU HAVE INHERITED LIES! THERE IS A WAY BACK HOME ALL IS NOT LOST. AHAYAH RESTORES ALL THINGS AND HE IS RESTORING US AS A PEOPLE. STOP LOOKING TO YOUR SO-CALLED WHITE PARENTS FOR TRUTH. GO SEEK YOUR CREATOR FOR THE TRUTH. IN TRUTH BY TAKING YOU INTO THEIR HOMES IS NO DIFFERENT THAN A HOUSE NEGRO IN CAPTIVITY WHO DOESN’T KNOW HE’S NOT FREE. FIND YOUR WAY BACK HOME AND BE FREE INDEED! IT IS TRUTH THAT MAKES US FREE!!! SO FACE THE TRUTH AND SEEK THE TRUTH!

    • Simply.

      HOW many children have YOU adopted?

      Until the answer is greater than one, you have no clue.

    • wow! I am an adoptive mom. I am not a child molester, I did not buy my daughter, she is not my pet, her birth mother did not want to parent (so no matter what financial or other resources I threw at her, it would not have mattered). I chose to adopt because of infertility. Her birth mother chose me because she saw in me the kind of mother she wanted for the child she carried. I use every resource I have to expose my daughter to her heritage and culture- media, friends, books, her birth family. I am offended by your comment. Instead of choosing to judge and ridicule transracial families, maybe your words could have action in helping us where we might fall short. Realizing that my only intention in adopting was to create a family and be a mother, not oppress or push white idealogy on anyone.

      • oh, and I was open to any race of child (caucasian, African American, Asian, Hispanic). Her birth mother chose us.

    • I’m sorry for what happened to you. Really I am. But to come on here yelling and screaming at us (as you use all capital letters) just shows your ignorance. And I’m sorry you are still living 200 years ago, but the rest of the world is trying to move on and right the wrongs of the past. Your views of adoption are simple minded at best. Your anger is misplaced. I agree…more needs to be done to enhance the lives of African American communities, but to condemn white people for wanting to bring joy and love into a black child’s life is hypocrisy on your behalf.

      And I’m sorry…I can’t read everything you typed because it is full ideas that are just plain wrong…and too long winded with judgements that are wrongly placed.

      Good luck in life, dear, you’re going to need it.

  43. What is your problem im absolutely disgusted i happen to be a black adopted by an all white family and let me tell you they are not my so called parents they ARE my parents. i was not taken away by my black birth parents and would not go back and change my life at all. “I FIND IT VERY OFFENSIVE WHEN I SEE WHITE PEOPLE WITH OUR CHILDREN!,” I am not YOUR child just because my skin happens to be a darker shade. I was not forced to change my name im proud of the way i speak. My parents are not my savoir and all the other shit you say. They are MY PARENTS and i LOVE them to death and do not want to be part of any black family. My family is best family in the world and have given me all opportunities to learn about black roots and have taken me to countless “black” museums. im growing up in all white neighborhood going to most diverse school ever and im proud of all of it and you rant with not change a thing. Dont you dare call me a “PET” im not pet im a daughter not a dog or cat. I do not worship them im atheist by the way if Jesus did not want me in white family the why in Jesuss name am i then. I find you point of view on matter quite revolting and offense. Im sorry you are going through this court thing but you have no right of putting words like this in the mouths of the people like me out there.

    • Be proud you sell out! You don’t want to be a part of a Black family. That is just sad to say. Who the hell raised you?

  44. There are enough white babies to adopt, why are there so many white people adopting our children? And why is it so hard for us to care for our own. Back in the day the white folks didn’t want us, now they’re scooping us up. Someone please explain.

    • where's yours?

      You must understand how adoption works. If you read Rachel’s post, you’d understand that black children, for the most part, are generally less preferred. White children are adopted a lot faster. However, not every white person goes into adoption feels this way. Some of us don’t care what color the child is…because we just want a CHILD. And we are willing to do whatever it takes to take care of a child of a different race.

      We are not “scooping” you up, as you call it. We just want to be parents and some of us don’t judge by skin color.

    • No, there is not a need for people to adopt white babies in the USA. There are long lists of people waiting to adopt white babies.

      However, there is a need for people to adopt babies of color and children of all ages and races from foster care.

  45. Adopt a biracial child and you’ll probably endure fewer questions. I am biracial with a white mom. yes, people assume my parents must be black but when they see me with my white mom, no one asks if i am adopted (the only question i truly endured as a child was “are you mixed?”).

    I don’t have a problem with interracial adoption per se, I just get irritated when people adopt black kids outside of the US. This is why I can’t stand Angelina and Madonna but totally think Sandra Bullock, Spielberg, Mariska Hargitay are awesome because they adopted black kids from within the US. I don’t hate African kids, I just put Americans first.

    • where's yours?

      So sorry that my international adoption “irritates” you. Frankly, I don’t care. But if you had any knowledge of the red tape and bureaucracy that surrounds adoptions, you’d realize that not everyone CAN adopt domestically. Some people are forced to go overseas because of limitations (not married long enough, not married at all, LGBT). Other countries may allow potential parents to adopt where they would be unable to do so because of strict state limitations.

      And, you know…some people just feel drawn to a specific country. And they don’t need to explain themselves to you.

      I agree, there are so many children who need to be adopted here on this soil. But until people like you are willing to put your money where your mouth is…it’s not going to get better. Stop judging those of us who go overseas when you yourself are not doing anything to help the problem.

    • @Long Dale Blue, please understand in order to adopt (young) children in the US you must be foster parent first. At least, in most states. It’s unrealistic to think famous entertainers would pursue this option.

  46. The problem with white people adopting black babies is it messes with the babies life. They grow up with white customs and values and in school will be drawn to white people more but they still wont fit in 100% with them. On the other hand they wont fit in 100% with the black people because their customs are different. This leaves them half in each group and not 100% accepted by either. And before you say racism or thats in the past how many black friends does the average white person have? Maybe 1 or 2 out of 15 + friends. Same with black people. They might have a couple of white friends but the majority is black. People feel most comfortable with those that are like them. Its human nature.

    • I’m a white woman with only 10 friends, 6 of whom are black, 1 one of which is mixed, and only 3 of which are white. I have also always gone to majority black schools and lived in majority black neighborhoods. Maybe you don’t see interracial bonds because you don’t want to. But the love I have for my nonwhite friends is not to be trivialized or treated as false. They are important to me, despite what many people seem to believe. Judge me how you want, I don’t care. But I just proved you wrong.

  47. Thanks for the post.

    I’m OFTEN questioned by random strangers about my children. But in our family, I’m the minority. My wife and children are black, I’m not. So when I’m out with them, the questions fly.

    I look forward to reading more about how parenting choices differ when raising a child not of your race – ie: did you choose to live in a predominately black neighborhood, is your child the only black child at their school, etc.

    The thing that bugs me most sometimes, is that I’m the “hair mom,” I am the one who does my daughter’s hair, but my lovely wife, simply by sharing the same skin tone, gets all of the credit… Shallow, I know, but still!

  48. When I see people of the opinion that “you shouldn’t have adopted a black child” (I’m white), those opinions are 99% of the time coming from people who have never adopted nor would ever consider adopting a child. So, to me, their opinion is invalidated to me. If you are not going to be a part of the solution, then you have no right to complain to me.

    I’m providing a loving, stable home to my black son and asian daughter in a 2-parent home in a metropolitan area. Our neighborhood is diverse, our friends and co-workers are diverse, and our schools are excellent. My daughter has friends who are asian-adoptees and we spend time with families that are all asian. My son has friends who are trans-racial adoptees and we spent time with families that are all black. Our church is diverse, too.

    From those in the black community who are bashing whites for adopting children and saying that we can not provide them with diversity, self-esteem, prepare them for life as an adult black person: do you provide your children with diversity? Do you let the schools provide it for you? Is your church diverse? Are the people you have over in your home (kids friends, your friends for dinner, etc.) are they are diverse group of people or all black?

    As far as self-esteem, our children see people who look like them, families that look like ours, and we have a village of people to go to for help. My eyes are constantly being opened to how extensive white privilege is. When my son grows up, will he be able to go to the store without being watched to see if he’s stealing anything? Will my daughter be seen as some sort of sex goddess (the prevalent stereotype of pretty asian girls)? We will prepare them for their future and have friends coming alone side us to offer support who have walked their path.

    My children are exposes purposefully to more diversity than most families, I imagine.

    What concerns me is that when my black son grows up, will he be faced with the black community at large calling him “oreo” and not accepting him. If that is the case, the problem does not lie with my son or my parenting, it lies with the black community not accepting of “it’s own”.

    I agree with a previous poster….if you are concerned about whites adopting black children and are serious concerned about the welfare of these children (and you are not in a place to be able to adopt), then do what you can to offer your assistance. We have a local hair salon that offers classes to new moms and adoptive moms on caring for their children’s hair. How awesome is that?

    Part of the solution and not just complaining.

    • Hi, all! I’m Rachel, the article’s author. I appreciate the feedback, whether I agree with it or not.

      I agree with much of what @MaMaNina is saying. I think it’s important for ANY person, regardless of race, to be open to diversity and incorporating it into his/her life and a family’s life. I also think diversity goes beyond race. Our kids should be around people who are different than them in other ways—disability, for instance. I wrote another article for this website on ways parents can prepare for transracial adoption—-and I think that’s very important if one is going to adopt transracially—to enter into the process EYES WIDE OPEN—prepared and educated.

      I can tell you that there are not enough families willing to adopt black kids—whether it be a perfectly healthy black newborn or a black sibling group of six from foster care. Look at any “waiting child” website. Ask adoption agencies. I know of several situations where a black birth mother had just one or two profiles to choose from (profiles being pictures of prospective adoptive parents) because most adoptive parents only want the perfect, healthy, white newborn. Some agencies charge less money for adoptions of black kids as a way to motivate people to accept black kids. It’s a complicated and sad situation.

      Some of you might think too many white parents are adopting black kids, but the truth is that not enough parents—be it black, white, or another race—are not adopting minority kids.

      If you want to make a difference, instead of ranting about the “bad white parents,” adopt black kids from foster care. Did you know there are over 125,000 kids FREE FOR ADOPTION in THIS country, right now? Many of these kids are black and Hispanic. Many of these kids will age out of the system and become homeless, pregnant, drop-outs, prisoners, and on state aid.

      So before you say “shame on whites for adopting blacks,” consider that if many whites didn’t step up and adopt black kids, these kids would grow into adults facing some very big issues…that could have been avoided!

      I’m all for anyone adopting, if they can provide what the child needs. If you are black and are concerned about the welfare of black kids in this country, then adopt.

      I truly believe the most important thing is to meet the child’s immediate needs—stable, loving home. Period. A child doesn’t care about racial politics or racial history when he/she has been in foster care, along with his or her siblings, for six years. A child doesn’t care, as a newborn, about the skin color of the mom or dad. ADOPTION IS ABOUT THE CHILD, NOT THE ADULT(S).

      Again, I fully believe in adopting only after you have educated yourself and have committed to continuing to educate yourself. Transracial adoption shouldn’t be taken lightly. But I also think adoptive parents (of any race), shouldn’t allow the public’s opinion to stop them from adopting children who are in need of a stable, loving home. I didn’t yield to anyone’s “don’t do it,” and I’m thankful I didn’t. My girls are my precious daughters whom I love and adore. I am blessed to be called their mom.

  49. great article. As mom to a rainbow family (one white, one hispanic, one biracial, one black) I am in absolute agreement with you and feel the same way, the bottom line is I wanted to be a mom and wanted the children God had designed for us!

  50. I love that awareness for adoption is being expressed. The bottom line is that a child who goes to a good home with educated, nurturing, wonderful parents, regardless of race, is better off than a child who is never adopted. Just ask any child waiting for a family! I’m sure they would love to tell you themselves. Really appreciate the comments from adults who were adopted too!

  51. I loved this article! Unfortunately, I then took the time to read the comments. I am deeply saddened by the posters that do not have a heart for adoption. My Christian faith says that we are all “adopted” into Christ’s family, so I find this baffling that anyone thinks adoption should only be done under the banner that one adopt within ones own race. We are white and recently adopted a beautiful brown baby. We spent over three years in the adoption process, suffered countless heartaches, and felt despair more often than I wish on my worst enemy. You cannot tell me that the love and happiness I feel today with our beautiful daughter is wrong. If it is, I don’t want to be right.

    We know that there is a tremendous responsibility to raise her with a healthy racial identity, and we do not take that lightly. We are committed to giving her every opportunity in her life.

    While we do not have a relationship with our Birth Mother, we are confident that she made this decision after a lot of thought and prayer. She was not coerced into making an adoption plan. It was her decision. One that has blessed us immeasurably. We love and respect her deeply!

    I leave you with the funniest/oddest thing anyone has ever said to us when in public. *Note, my husband was with me* “Did she come out of you that color?” She was totally joking, but all I could think was, “Nice.”

    • Thats a nice comment about God adopting us into his family. However don’t forget God had a chosen people first. Then he later accepted the Gentiles. Please tell the whole story. Please do further study to find out who the chosen people were and who the Gentiles were. Please do your daughter a favor and learn to love her for who she will be A Black Woman. I know Black is hard to accept so sometimes it’s diluted and called Brown….Black is Black

  52. Thank you, thank you, THANK YOU for this post!!

    It still amazes me how much stigma and blatant ignorance still surrounds adoption, particularly transracial adoption. It amazes me how people still think adoption is “buying” a child. If it were that easy, I’d run down to Target and get one half price!!!!!

    I have often wondered what I will say when I am asked these same nosy…even downright rude questions. But the fact of the matter is that absolutely no stranger, of any race, has the right to come in and tell me that loving my child is wrong. I have black family members by blood. I have seen the racism they face. I have and will continue to research heritage, hair styles and hair care, skin care, and other issues considered pertinent to the black culture. Because my child(ren) NEED this.

    As a white mother, I have a duty and responsibility to provide my adopted child(ren) with access to their culture, their history, their world. I am not one who will sit back and say “color doesn’t matter”, because, especially after reading such ignorant posts here, it obviously does.

    This whole idea that adoption is baby snatching, baby buying and for someone to be so ignorant to say that we as adoptive parents are child molesters……I say these people need to educate themselves on what adoption really is. Some of us cannot have biological children. So because they don’t want black children to be adopted, we should just let them sit in group homes or foster care?

    And as for the decision to go overseas…not everyone qualifies for domestic adoption. For example, LGBT and single parents. While others still are not comfortable with the idea of having a birth mother taking the baby back. For me, it’s not about saving a child, and I find it HIGHLY offensive for someone to say that my child will be my pet “negro”….I have dogs, darlin’. I don’t need a pet.

    People here seem to be more focused on protecting the culture and heritage of the child……and are forgetting the well-being and nurturing of the child itself. It is more important, IMO, that the child grows up to be healthy, happy and stable. YES, they need their culture. YES, they need exposure to their race (and other races). But that shouldn’t be the most important disqualifying factor for white parents. For people to assume that we as white parents are going to take these precious children and isolate them from their heritage is downright ignorant. I want my kids to have access to their culture! I want them to have black friends! I want them to have Asian friends!!! I want them to live! But not in a culturally isolated box!

    It is very saddening to see such hatred and stigma surrounding such an act of love and devotion as adoption. It will not deter me, it will only make me a better adoptive mother to my black child(ren).

  53. Ireallydon'tcare

    My husband and I are in the process of adopting from the foster care system. We could care less what race our child is going to be. This doesn’t mean we don’t recognize that there will be different challenges in raising a child that is not the same race as us, but it means we’re not going to let skin color determine the child. Not only could we care less about our child’s skin color, but we could care less about other people’s opinions. Sure, some will bother us, but in the end it doesn’t matter. The point is that there are thousands of children living without families and they need one, so we are going to adopt. End of discussion.

  54. Wow! I am so saddened by the amount of ignorance that is being sprouted on the comments. God Bless ANYONE who adopts. They have gone through a hard road to adopt and are loving parents. Many of their children will be more diverse than AA children raised by AA parents.

    Both of my parents are black. I was raised in a diverse neighborhood and went to diverse schools (they were mostly 50% white and 50% mixed races). I decided to go to an HCBU and was blown away by how little many of my fellow Black students interacted with people of other races. Many of them were taught to fear other races, esp. White people. They had a hard time adjusting to a metropolitan city and many of them had a hard time adjusting to working in diverse settings.

    As a child I got called Oreo because I had long hair (that was permed because my Black mother didn’t know how to deal with my kinky-curly hair-I will say again that my BLACK mother PERMED my hair), spoke “white”, and had “white” hobbies. At a young age I would challenge people to tell me what it meant to speak “black” and to have “black” hobbies. Not one person was ever able to answer that for me. In many cases I knew (and still know) more Black history than they ever did.

    When I joined the Army and went to Basic Training many Black soldiers ostracized me for the way I spoke and carried myself. It wasn’t accepted as Black until the Commander made a comment about me being a student at Howard (he went to Hampton).

    All that to say – how many of the haters on this site raise their children in a diverse manor? How many of you racist (yes, to hate White for adopting Blacks just for the fact that they are White is racist) Blacks would ever consider adopting? How many of you go out of your way to take your children to culturally diverse museums, programs, plays? Heck, how many of you can name all the countries in Africa?

    To those who hate – put your money, home, life and soul where your mouth is and adopt.

    To anyone considering adoption or who has already adopted – Bless you, your family is beautiful and so are you for opening your homes and souls to a child in need.

  55. I have not read all the comments and i read most of the post and i’m on my phone so i am not gonna trip about formality. I just wanted to add a few things to this discussion.

    1) it is not always true that birth mothers do not want to parent their children and therefor give them up for adoption.
    2) some adoptive parents are mentally ill
    3) each person in a family unit that has been built through transracial adoption has their own experience
    4) some birth parents are mentally ill
    5) some adopted children will be mentally ill
    6) there is no such thing as an expert of adoption studies
    7) we might want to think about who benefits from colorblindness
    8) we might want to do further readings on MLK
    9) we might want to think about what it means to have a nuclear family be the most represented construct of family in America
    10) if you self-identify as a white person, a black person, a black adopted person or what have you, can you imagine yourself taking a walk in someone elses shoes?

    These statements are deliberately vague. Your work is to elaborate and use your imagination. I am guessing that you will find that in the end nothing that seems rosy and the best things comes without thorns.

  56. This artilcle was very interesting and I have to say that I’ve been asking some of the same questions. I don’t think it really matters who a child is placed with as long as it’s with people are have great hearts and want to adopt for the right reasons.
    My partner and I are two African Amercian males and are seeking open adoption. It’s funny because we are the only two AA’s gay males amongst 100’s of other couples through our agency. For the life of me, I can’t seem to figure it out but I’m hoping this isn’t going to be a hindrance for us trying to adopt. I know I would love to see more of “us” trying to provide a great life for a child but I really wish I would understand why their aren’t more people of color looking to adopt.
    If anyone is interested in looking at our story fill free to look at our websites:

    http://derekanddonnieadopt.wix.com/journey#!contact-us
    http://www.iheartadoption.org/users/derekanddonnieadopt

    • Derek,

      I think more blacks do not adopt because of lack of information. They assume adoption is costly rather than researching. Most white folks I have encountered are aware that if they go through social services adoption is paid for. After adoption these parents still recieve monthly payments, and end of year tax breaks. Did you know in some states child care, medical care and other benefits are still provided to the adopted families. In most cases adoption of black children could be considered legalized slavery.
      Consider this: Say you adopt 4 black children and recieve $500.00/month for each, and then a 13,000.00 tax credit at the end of the year, and every year until 18 yrs of age. This along with no child care fees until age 13, and medical care, and in some cases tuition free private school. It can be cheaper to adopt verses having your own children. And for those who can’t this is an optimal situation and for others it’s legalized slavery to the tune of $ 24,000.00/yr cash and $42,000/year in tax breaks…Depending on your income status you may be eligible for food stamps possibly anothe $800.00/month for four children and a cash amount of another $520.00/month. So now add another $15, 840.00 to your year end totals. This is big business, just like the penial system whereby when an offender enters and depending on his class of felony the institution recieves $20,000-$60,000/year for one offeder. See if you are a conscious black person you stay aware of this. This is why you see so many blacks outraged of what reaks to them as slavery. Everyone is asking what is the benefit of transracial adoption….these children are easier to get and the return on investment for those with the wrong mindset can be great. Let’s turn the light on!

  57. Thank you Rachel for this article. You are indeed one of a kind. 🙂

  58. Thanks Rachel. I really appreciate the time, effort and honest response. I can’t agree with you more!!

  59. Lovely article…the world needs more folks like this!

  60. I wanted to share my story on why some Caucasian couples adopt interracial.

    Doing research for over two years on adoption and foster care, my husband and I (both Caucasian) became licensed foster parents as of last year. I can break barriers on why some couples choose this path. Infertility is a big reason why many venture into adoption/fostering. In other cases children who left the nest so to speak leave older individuals wanting that nest filled again who have the room and time to provide a loving home for children. In my case I have many dangerous health issues that would put the life of my bio child and myself at high risk. I thought to myself “There are so many children that need loving homes, why take such a risk”.

    I grew up with my mother who was a preschool teacher. I was always around babies/children of different races. Honestly I never asked my mother about the differences and always saw other kids like myself. My mother treated all children the same and loved them all equally. She has many friends of color and today works with teen moms who in many situations, end up choosing adoption for their babies.

    As my husband and I became foster parents we have learned so much through this process. We chose foster care because we wanted to help children with hopes of adoption.When they ask “What preference do you have over gender and race?” It really shocked me. I figured all people that ventured into this area with open hearts would not judge a child. Now I am starting to see why this area is so sensitive. When we answered this question, we simply stated any gender and race up to age 3. We did not see the difference in the life of a child who needs a home.

    After fostering a drug addicted Caucasian female for over 5 months we are being given the chance to take in a African American male with possibility of adoption and couldn’t be more thrilled to become a family with this little guy! I’m doing research to learn how my husband and I can take care of this little guy in such a discriminating world. It really hurts me to see just how cruel some of these posts are alone.

    Let me explain the situation of this little boy..he came from a violent home only 6 months old. He is one of many siblings where his mother continues to have another child every year. They end up in foster care and eventually adopted if there are loving families willing to look past all odds. If no one adopted these poor babies they would have no permanency and age out of foster care on the streets not knowing a single person to love them unconditionally. These kids deserve more than this. It’s not just Caucasian adopting African American children. My mothers best friend is my inspiration! She is African American and adopted a Caucasian baby into her family. Asian, African American, Native American, Hispanic, Caucasian..What is the big deal?

    A family is what you make of it. These children all the same, special angels that need guidance, love and protection. Just like your biological children, you want the very best. Just like the children, most of these foster/adoptive families have been through more than one can imagine just to have a family. Please see it through their eyes, we adopt outside of race because we don’t see race. We see a beautiful child who needs a home. Let’s start this new year off in the right direction for the sake of these kids.

  61. The article was right to the point. Well thought out. Tears were rolling down my face (just finished Skin the movie).

  62. I am looking for a lovely couples to adopt my son .please i want only serious person to contact me . my email address is jenniferflatt63@gmail.com please i really need some one to adopt my son i am in very hard time .

  63. Wow this is really fascinating. You know as a ‘black guy,’ or “African American” or however people would refer to me, I see statistics like adoption rates & such and it makes me so sad that people look at the black babies with the weird eye 🙁 but I guess at the same time it’s nice to know that some people will and want to. It’s amazing and it shows that adopting anyone matters & in this case a black baby.

    Did you hear on the news a white family who adopted a black baby on the plane got slapped by a guy next to the wife? Apparently he was an old guy and drunk but still…..wowwww…but anyways, I sincerely hope you stay with it & don’t suffer idiots.

  64. “history demonstrates that white people haven’t always been very kind to people of color, to say the least.”

    What the hell? Is this the f*cking Onion? What’s with this racial collectivism bull?

    I prefer to be judged on what I do, not on what people with my same skin coloration did hundreds of years ago.

    • Denene@MyBrownBaby

      Jeff,

      Man, let me tell you: As an African American woman in America, I wish I, too, could be judged by what I do, not by what people with the same skin coloration do. What a wonderful world that would be…

  65. Adopting a child of a different race, black or otherwise is not for everyone. It certainly is not a “new” concept and in today’s ever evolving world, it certainly is much easier to do so. Today, couples of the same gender can adopt and this presents its own challenges, too. Should gays be allowed to adopt ? Without a doubt ! They too, as consenting adults and tax paying citizens have every right to be happy, fulfill their dreams and create the family they want and deserve. As with a white couple adopting a black child, this is relatively simple when the child is young. However, as they grow, they will need support, in-put and role models from African-Americans. This is only natural, they need to know about themselves and their own race. Exposure to other people from their own race is critical to their identity and development. The same holds true for gays. Two women raising a boy must have regular input from strong males to help the child grow and know what it means to be a man and vice versa for two men raising a girl and (less desirable) where regular female input is crucial for development. However, these scenarios take place daily and the children do turn out to be fine, well adjusted and productive human beings. For you see, love and good rearing trumpets all !

  66. First off let me say that any child deserves a chance at a better life, but this black and white issue is real and has real effects from the past and present. I think that whites adopting other races of kids is somewhat of a fad. Especially if someone in Hollywood gets on first. It was the Asian babies, the indian babies, now the black babies. All of which white America has played a big role in their famine and poverty as a people. Ask the question WHY are they the only ones who feel a need to do this? I think some truly feel that it will give back to the past, but if you want to help another race of people, use your time and money to build and empower the educations, neighborhoods, and families who are trying but cant afford to do as much. This(especially raising a black male) causes problems because you are teaching him a way most whites think and feel. He will not be connected to most other African americans, and will be torn between the two. He will also only date a white woman 9 out of 10 times.

  67. I was married to a man raised in a White family. I came to find out over time that HE HATED BLACK PEOPLE! He said he married me because I was a “white woman in a Black body”. Why? Because I wanted an education. He equated all things positive with Whiteness. Before me, he had never dated a Black woman. Once he came to pick me up for work and he was sobbing and shaking. At first he was afraid to tell my why, but eventually he did. He stated that on his way to pick me up from work he would see Black people and think things like, “look at that big lipped nigger, or look at that Black nigger”. He knew it was wrong, but he couldn’t help himself. It was burned in his brain. That’s why he was in tears.

    He had no ability to cope with, or recognize racism. We owned a company and he went to assess a job at the home owners request. One of the neighbors, an off duty policeman, saw him, called the police on him and followed him 25 miles back to our town, (ON HIS OFF DAY) all because there had been some burglaries in that neighborhood and my husband, for some strange reason, ( that ole’ black magic), seemed like a likely perpetrator. My husband had some old tickets and wound up going to jail all because a racist saw a Black man and thought he must be a criminal. He saw nothing wrong with it and even thought the off duty White guy was a cool guy. I guess because on some level my ex thinks it’s okay to view all Blacks, even when they are tax paying business owners called to give estimates to clients, as criminals.

    He was sick. We ended because one night he told me out of the blue, “you’re Black. No one can ever love you.”. I knew that I had to leave. We were never going to have a chance for a good relationship. Why? Because I wasn’t White… I left, not only because he felt that way about me, because I knew he felt that way about himself as well.

  68. This article, while emanating so much “feel good” energy, is riddled with hypocrisy and self-righteousness. There are so many things I would like to ask but I’ll just pose one question: why adopt an infant? That is, why not adopt a black preteen or a drug-addicted child?

    You start off with this hateful stereotype directed at white people; about things that happened over 150 years ago. Please elaborate why people should buy into your being different from plantation owners? It seems to me that you are just as likely to parade this child around. I think I can understand why this black man approached you. He had a legitimate concern. He probably wondered: how is this white woman going to raise this child? It’s a shame that she will probably feel alienated from her ethnic culture.

    • Dan, my wife and I adopted a sibling group of four children. 12yrs, 9yrs, 7yrs, and 5yrs old. our 12 year old has deep anger issues and our 9yr old has a neurological disorder due to fetal alcohol syndrome. So my friend, It does happen. I am caucasian but I grew up in the projects of North Memphis saturated in the black culture. I had to fight every day because of my color and the hatred of whites from which I had nothing to do with. After being raised in this culture, overcoming many obstacles, I received my teaching degree (at 35yrs old). I returned to the same neighborhood and taught school. To my colleagues, I have more knowledge of black culture than most of the all black teaching staff. I never for one minute felt sorry for our adopted children because they were black, I saw a family of children who needed a mom and dad. I can also assure you that our children are not paraded around like a trophy of my good deeds to the black community. Yet, I am still perceived by many as you described in your comment, by blacks and whites. But at the end of the day, I have to overlook these comments and perceptions, explain them to my children, and love them the way God intended. As children, not a color. So my brother, there are a few of us out there, but sadly enough, there are many as you described. That being said, we live in a fallen world full of sin, unrealistic expectations, and our only hope is in Christ. That is all

  69. Some of the comments I’m reading here are very sad. My husband and I are pursuing adoption and know that we can open our hearts and home to a child of any race. Unfortunately, the truth is that the majority of white families are open only to white children but there are many many black children that need families. These children, without the gift of adoption, will end up languishing in foster care. Our motivation is to provide a child with a loving, safe, healthy and happy home and we are not going to deny a child just because of the color of his skin. Yes, we could adopt a white baby. And we could so easily. And we might. But we also know we can feel immense love for a child with a different skin color. How is that anything but wonderful? If we truly are all equal then what is the problem?

    Is our society perfect? Not even close. But these comments perpetuate and fuel continued racial tensions that we should all be working to abolish. It’s just so sad because sentiments like this are just plain detrimental to the welfare of children that need homes. Don’t scare well-meaning white people away from raising black babies that need us. This is just insane to me. Slavery? What? How on earth does welcoming a child into a happy home and providing love and opportunity equate to slavery? Unless you are going to adopt all of the black babies that need homes yourself then you should really rethink your thoughts and keep them to yourself. What matters here are the CHILDREN, not your unfortunate hate-filled stigmas. At the end of the day, this is about love not a political or social statement. A child needs love, parents have it to give. End of story.

    • Sorry but you don’t have a clue. As a white person you don’t realise how racist the world all is. As a transracial adoptee I can tell you that even well meaning, loving white parents have no clue about racism and how to handle it. That makes the transracial adoptee’s experience very difficult even if the White adoptive parent does everything ‘right’. If you are prepared to expect that le doesn’t conquer all and that you will need to prepare and acknowledge a race driven world then you should go ahead and adopt. But your above attitude is depressing to someone like me because colourblind approaches are actually more harmful to transracial adoptees than you seem to realise. Do some research and you will see. I suggest pactadopt newsletters or try reading articles by academic and adoptive mum e Kay trimberger. Or just take a leaf from the above. This blogger has all the right ideas! You don’t. Your naivety would harm an adoptee. Sorry if this sounds rude but you really instill fear in me for future adoptees.

  70. People are talking about black people don’t want to adopt. I HAVE BEEN SEARCHING THE NET CONSTANTLY AS I REALLY WANT TO ADOPT!! Not just a black baby but any baby that needs it. However I have been very disappointed that the only thing i see online are adoption agencies which help “AMERICANS” Adopt babies. HOW ABOUT IF YOU ARE NOT AMERICAN YOU CAN’T ADOPT!!! I HAVE FOUND NOTHING TO HELP NOTHING!!!. I’m an African women who was educated in Europe and I’m currently doing my PhD. I’m a research scientist.But unless you are American LOL it seems even though I’m African i can’t even adopt our own African babies!!!! Makes me mad!!! 🙁

  71. I really wish I had the time to write out our adoption story. Some of the complications of working with DHS in Mississippi was more than race, there were many personal objections from within the department. We are caucasian and our adopted children (a sibling group of 4 brown babies) were being remanded to an orphanage if our adoption did not happen. Through much prayer, our wonderful lawyer Vance Daly, and a precious judge, we were able to overcome the racial stereotyping and adopt these children. My job is not to teach them to find their identity in their color, but find their identity in who God made them to be.

  72. I am also a white mom of an adopted daughter. I was also adopted as an infant. When people ask me questions, which isn’t actually that often, I simply say “Yes, she’s my daughter. There are lots of different ways to make a family.” It cuts them off in their tracks. It’s also how I explain it to my daughter so when I say it in public, she’s not surprised. I tell her people are naturally curious. We have all found ourselves staring at something or asking questions about something that doesn’t make sense in our head. It is human nature. Use it as an opportunity to teach.

  73. Unfathomable ** Damn auto correct

  74. I can’t understand white people accusing us People of color of being the ones with the issues?!?!? It’s unfathomable to me and I will never understand the hypocrisy. Then again it’s been your way to confuse and lie to the world about equal opportunity and reverse racism which by the way does not EXAIST!!!! I’ve seen the word “racism,hateful” and “past” riddle gratuitously all over this post and the comments and it makes me sick. What white people need to understand is it is impossible for me as a black woman to be racist by definition. My disdain for white people based on the oppression I have faced, the hateful acts and comments, the mental genocide of me and my people, the system that THEY CREATED AND COMTINUE TO CONTRIBUTE TO IN ORDER TO MAINTAIN THEIR POWER AND WHITE PRIVALEFGE doesn’t not in any way change the facts. It’s does not mean that there will be less White doctors, that the standards of beauty will change and the world will favor and aspire to Black beauty, it does not affect YOUR OPPORTUNITIES, Your PRIVELESGE, YOUR POWER OR SOCIO ECONOMIC STATUS!!!!! So educate yourself. Call me justifiably ANGRY AND AWARE! But NOT RACIST! CONVERSELY The racism imposed on people of color now and for thousands of years has done JUST THAT!!! We have not had equal opportunities because of RACISM, we can not access vital resources because of RACISM, we occupy impoverished neighborhoods because we have a lower quality of life and we have been forced to stay in unlivable living conditions due to
    Our low SOCIOECONOMIC BACKGROUNDS BECAUSE
    OF RACISM. Can you white people say the same?! No way! Colorblindness is a disservice to children of color, it is crippling and white people want to believe Love is enough or that because they have the money they are equipped with the tools to raise a strong, conscious, self aware and self loving Black Child. It’s ludacris. As a black woman raised by black parents I have had a hard enough to time LOVING myself and my features because we live in a world that at every turn and Every and angle we are told we are NOT GOOD ENOUHH. We are not worth a good quality of education, we should not have access to the EXACT same resources our white counterparts have ALWAYS had access to and this the reason they excel academically and economically. We live in a world that tells us overtly everyday and second that Black people and people of color they are ugly and do not meet your white standards of Beauty, that socially and economically the playing field it detrimentally uneven, that this is not OUR world we are merely unwelcomed guests occupying space DESPITE the fact that we built and sustained the land for the White Man. Can you imagine living in a world so cold and full of hate and distrust?! Don’t you realize how difficult it makes it for us to Love
    Ourslelves and hold onto our culture being raised by our Black families?!? What would make you think you as a white person could give us the most vital piece of ones exsistance; OUR IDENTITY! How could you give us a strong sense of self?! It makes no sense! Please don’t talk about Love and God. This world is round and that’s the way it is. A white person can not raise a strong and self
    Loving black person because most you of you posters barely acknowledge the true difficulties we face as people of color. WHITE PEOPLE CAN NOT IDENTIFY WITH OUR PLIGHT AND THEREFOR CAN NOT CHANGE OUR REALITY AND HELP US COPE WITH THE RACIAL BARRIERS WE FACE DAILY! We don’t need anymore Black people Hating who they are because white people and the white world tell them black isn’t right, white is right. It’s as prevalent now as it’s ever been! Movies, television and music depicting white people as model citizens and Beautiful and righteous people. It makes me so sad. I cried reading many posts here. White people still don’t and never will get it. I understand you feel your existence is useless, you have no real identity because EVERYTHING YOU HAVE, the power the money the perception of white being right, the UNEARNED PRIVILEGE has ALL BEEN AT THE EXPENSE OF POEPLE OF
    COLOR! Your happy and charmed existences are the “marks of an insufferable privilege BOUGHT AT THE PRICE OF OTHER PEOPLES AGONY!” You want to feel like a good person by Adopting our Babies?!?!? Here’s a better idea, stop contributing to a system that perpetuates your power and privaledge. Educate your white “colorblind” friends, and give up your positions so that there are more opportunities for Black teachers, professors, doctors, counsellors. Help create the opportunities we need and resources
    YOU MONOPOLIZE to create more opportunities for us to go to better schools! Start there because you are doing more harm than good by thinking adopting Black is the way.

  75. It’s not always very simple to just say look at the websites and see who is smiling back at you. As an 2 parent mix race family licensed for foster care and trying to adopt, we have repeatedly been passed over for what I presume are white families. It’s great it worked out for you but some of us whose actual profession is as a graduate level social worker for 15 years having done child abuse investigations for 13 of those years 2 years in Indian Child Welfare in the same agency and I’ve removed many kids from danger and have placed often in white homes where I’ve seen they have adopted black children also part time adjunct instructor on Child Welfare with African American Children on the graduate level that I also developed the course, will be licensed clinically this year, have made numerous presentations on promoting a strong racial identity in African American children as well as having provided 10 months of weekly in home transracial adoption education to a white couple who is a very loving family I’ll add well it is difficult to see the very system I work for pass my own family over. I know the stats. I hear the pleas for more homes that are of color so what do we do? We try to become part of the solution only to be judged by two white social workers who came out to meet us and passed over several times. My research is extensive. The work of Dr. William Cross and Dr. Robert Sellers, Judith Freeman etc have been of great impact on educating me on the serious need for black children to not just be adopted by a loving family. Not just brought to cultural events and getting same race toys. But the ability to instill the psychological racial pride that can only come from a thorough understanding of what racial identity is and its impact on children as well as what white prospective adoptive parents to black children unconsciously bring into the parent relationship solely from being raised in a society of power, privilege and as Dr. Dubois notes, not being able to see ‘within the veil.’ Only a black person has the ‘dual consciousness’ which causes him to operate in two distinct and opposing worlds. One in the veil with those who look like him and yet ever knowing outside the veil he lives and is measured by the yardstick of those in power and unwilling to share. So for me and my family, for each white licensed family chosen over us means one less black child having an opportunity to learn and grow and excel in a way in our home that is not going to happen in the chosen families. Not because those families are bad, but because society does not require much if anything for them to truly understand inside and outside the veil. So they teach what they know which are Eurocentric values, standards and norms that do not profit a little for persons of color. Know I don’t condemn or judge you but you are sending my frustration. A well loving, highly Africentrically educated home, ready to be part of the solution and yet dismissed time and again because white workers still judge us by the standards by which they were raised mostly without ever realizing it and it hurts and it’s painful and it’s hard then to watch as white families adopt black kids easily comparatively.

  76. As an educator on African American Families in Child Welfare, a graduate level professional for 15 years working in Social Work, a father of 3 bi racial children, designer of Afrocentric instruments to properly do field assessments on needs analysis for AA families as well as being licensed for foster care and adoption I respectfully disagree with the authors rationale for why White people are adopting Black children.
    First, one needs to recognize adoption as it relates to any African American child is governed by the Multi Ethnic Placement Act and the Inter Ethnic Placement Providions. Before ‘IEP’ social workers could take race into account as a reason for a same race placement either in foster care or adoption. That was under MEPA. IEP amended MEPA which nullified the ability of social workers to use race as a consideration except in ‘narrow and exceptional circumstances’ which is very very strictly defined and is in such a way so that race factors in almost not at all. The federal law has the net effect of giving an advantage to white families for placement over black families. It does so in this way…
    The guidelines for which one needs to meet to become a foster or adoptive parent are based on Eurocentric standards and with a standard so high, it virtually eliminates the possibility of would be AA families to become foster parents or adoptive parents. The criteria may be criminal in nature, home standard requirements, economic requirements and many more. The test for AA families to be licensed is easily passed by most white families who have done criminal activity, but have had the resources to minimize the damage so that they remain eligible. Some crimes are arbitrary. It doesn’t matter if the crime was 20 years ago and you’ve changed your life completely. We’re not talking about sex offenders or murderers. They should and are barred for life. We’re talking drug, speeding, various theft, etc. Legislators who make these laws are not African American. They make the rules according to their own world view. It’s the same principle as when a social worker comes to your home and imposes his or her own Eurocentric standards on an AA family and if you don’t jump the hoops, your ‘uncooperative,’ ‘confrontational,’ and all this is written in your record not knowing it will come up once you decide to get licensed.
    Are there more white homes available? Yes, but the reason is not as simple as AA families just not applying. MEPA also doesn’t give biological parents final say on where the child gets placed or who adopts said child. The parent can give a preference but there are federal guidelines every state must adhere to, document and provide to their agency with adoptions as to family choice. ‘A child’s placement cannot be delayed or denied based on race.’ If a home regardless of race is available, that home may get used IF the other federal criteria are met which are 10.
    There is reason for African Americans to be concerned about current adoption law. The National Association of Black Social Workers has a lot to say about this issue and is strongly against not using same race placements. The racial identity impact as indicated by leading researchers such as Dr. William Cross, Dr. Robert Sellers and others bears out that AA children have inherent needs that white parents are not equipped to deliver. Saying that, I do transracial adoption education and IF a family is willing to not only learn but commit to immersing into AA culture, traditions, history of positive AA kings and queens etc then such white parents could do well. Let’s not confuse the issue. This isn’t white vs. black. This is a systems issue. White people want to do good parenting as well as AA parents. The issue is simply the system has put in place measures to ensure AA families will fall short of the licensing standards while those same standards even the averagest of average white family with a reasonably kept apt or house will qualify or have little to repair in order to qualify.
    You might ask, do you have more evidence?
    I, myself, own a 3 bedroom home on 20 wooded acres. I have no criminal record. I have a master degree. Created and taught a graduate level course on work with AA families. Developed specific Afrocentric assessment instruments. Am finishing up my clinical hours which will give me the highest level of social work license-clinical. Worked in social work currently and now for 15 years where 13 where doing child abuse investigations, and 2 in Indian child welfare. A researcher for 10 years on Afrocentrism. Have provided transracial adoption education to white families. Have raised my own kids and have a 4 year old now. Great health care, career, wages etc and I got licensed which cost several 1000 dollars when it was all said and done. You know what? That was over a year ago and social workers in my state have bypassed me numerous times for white families. This in effect means that although I made the legislative cut, in practice I was and am currently being treated as if I am not able to qualify or pass the test. In all my years in the field I can’t tell you the number of times white families have adopted back children and 1) I’ve never seen a black family adopt a white child 2) I’ve never seen a black family adopt anyone except a relative 3) I’ve investigated my fair share of transracial homes where I’ve had to remove the black children due to abuse from their white adoptive parents.
    Conclusions? The system sets the policies we adhere to and those policies favor whites as they always have since 1619. This isn’t your white neighbor doing this. This is your state and federal legislators doing this. The part your neighbor may own is the white privilege social workers recognize when making placement decisions and the unknown crimes they could get away with because of who they knew. I’m no racist. I’m a realist. We can’t put our head in the sand and pretend this isn’t reality.

  77. Michael Craddock

    I agree with the man in the gym. It’s obvious that black people either don’t or can’t adopt white children. You may argue that they aren’t capable in most cases. Perhaps tru ebut they also realize that they have no business with white kids. They would be stopped and questioned by police all the time. I say, stay in your own backyard and, please leave my people alone. If the kids grow up without any parents they are still better off knowing who and what they are. Black children raised by whites are only confused.

  78. Oh my. Thats crazy! Instead of being happy they have love and a chance to get a good education, etc. Is that what you tell the poor black kids in the orphanage?

  79. Because its easier for them then black couples. the Government is against black couples and they don’t want the black family together. Some white couples don’t teach there black adopted kids about there black history or anything in that nature they don’t send them to schools that teaches it. so they are isolate from thee other African American kids who do study black history. Even the media shows Television shows that brain washes the kids also. my thing is teach your blacks there history and let them make there own choice in life and the world would be a better place.

  80. Most countries overseas, i.e China, Russia,Guatemala, etc. have almost halted overseas adoptions. A white couple stand a better chance of winning the Powerball Lottery then receiving a white child in the US. Now, the “safe” Asian child is taken off the table. What’s left? That lil’ black child. The same black child (who in the 80s & 90s) a white couple wouldn’t entertain the thought of adopting, let alone come in their home. I remember reading an article in the 80s and the consensus was—possibly crack baby or HIV+. Now, don’t get me wrong. I believe and witness white people raising black child(ren) and have done a phenomenal job, hands down. These black child(ren) would otherwise fall through the cracks or stay in foster care and age out. God blessed them to have enough love in their hearts to share that love with one of his children that needed it desperately. I guess, I just disliked our black children being looked at lastly when all the avenues (foreign) have shut down. Like we were a last resort. On another note–Why aren’t people adopting Mexican children?

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