Final Recap
Final Recap It was an honor to be asked to participate in the symposium. I had the opportunity to meet new people and see old friends from all sectors of the adoption world, listen to different viewpoints, and express a few thoughts of my own.
That said, what struck me most after all was said and done were:
- the lack of sustained debate (it seemed that open adoption and open records are not the great controversies in theory they once were, and that a concentration of effort needs to be devoted to the practice of both,
- the remaining lack of trust between all parties to an adoption: birth and adoptive parents seek reassurances about post-adoption agreements, birth parents and adoptees seek assurances about the release of identifying information, and
- the need for more education among professionals, practitioners, and laypersons connected with adoption, from the young expectant parents considering an adoption plan, to jurists at the highest levels.
Open adoption outcomes in infant, same-race adoptions (Ruth McRoy's work) and child welfare adoptions (Oregon) are strong arguments for post-adoption contact where feasible, and there seemed to be pre-existing general agreement that was reinforced by presentation of practice outcomes and experiences. Certainly, Oregon's successful model made a positive impact and could be used to develop similar programs in other states where none exist.
I don't know how much of this was real, imagined, or wishful thinking, but there seemed to be marked shift away from the view that all adult adoptees are incapable of respecting a birth parent's wish for no contact without imposed legal restraints, and that all birth parents are tragic figures hiding from their birth children.
I was surprised by the lack of vocal support for the opposition to Measure 58, but can't really say whether this was a result of a wait-and-see attitude or a change in position. I was, however, encouraged to hear Joan Hollinger's challenge to the legality of contact vetoes which do not offer due process, and other comments made to which I referred earlier.
Acknowledgement of the need for openness in adoptions - past, present, and future - appeared to be widespread, however points of law still need to be addressed in individual jurisdictions and, we need to walk a careful line to encourage rather than mandate, educate rather than dictate.
Personally, I think the sooner all of us realize that adoptive families are
not like other families no matter how much we may want them to be, the better. No, we're not like other families - we've got less, and we've got more. We're families formed by a different means, with more people involved and, in most instances, multiple doses of caring and concern. We should accept and enjoy that difference and move ahead with the business of being "our own kinds of families" instead of trying to deny, avoid, or ignore it.
I don't know how long education and change take. Do you?
> > Page
1,
2,
3,
4,
5,
6,
7,
8,
9,
10,
11,
12
Home
Add Your Comments!
We want to know what you think. Your comments are important to us and the other readers. You are what makes this site special.