Tag Archives: adoption agencies

The Perplexing New Adoptee Citizenship Bill

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Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT) and Sen. Rick Scott (R-FL) have introduced the Citizenship for International Adoptees (CIA) act, ostensibly to help international adoptees not covered by the Child Citizenship Act (CCA) of 2000 to acquire U.S. citizenship.

When children arrive as immigrants in the U.S. from other countries for the purpose of adoption, they depend on their adoptive parents to get them citizenship. For a variety of reasons, some parents did not get the paperwork done. The Child Citizenship Act of 2000 provided automatic citizenship for internationally adopted children under 18; older adoptees were not included.

Some of those adoptees, who are now full-grown adults, even grandparents, don’t know they aren’t citizens. They may assume they are. Some find out they are not citizens when they apply for jobs, a passport , a security clearance, or other situation. Many non-citizen adoptees live in fear of not being able to get their government benefits such as Medicare and Social Security, and of being arrested and/or deported. Some find out about their status when they commit a crime, and those folks can then be subject to deportation. International adoptees have been deported as result of not being citizens, if they commit certain crimes, and even after they save their sentences.

If we are to have any defensible ethical position about international adoption, all international adoptees should be considered full family members, just like biological children. Adoptees are not “less than” or “not quite.” They should not be subject to deportation when the failure to acquire citizenship was not theirs–they arrived here as children. It was the responsibility of the adoptive parents to get them U.S. citizenship. There is currently no easy path for adult adoptees not covered by the CCA to get citizenship.

To my mind, the CIA bill has two major flaws.

  • The legislation will still allow international adoptees to be deported.
  • The legislation does not help deported international adoptees to return to the U.S.

To the first point: international adoptees (who could be in their 30’s, 40’s, 80’s) could be subject to deportation.

Sen. Lee’s press release acknowledges this: “Specifically, the bill instructs the Secretary of Homeland Security to issue a certificate of citizenship if adoptees establish through an application that their adoption was lawfully completed, that they resided in the legal physical custody of their U.S. citizen adoptive parents, that they have not committed serious criminal offenses, and that they meet other standard criteria under the INA.”

Here’s some additional important information. According to the Adoptee Rights Law Center, the CIA bill “sets up at least fifteen separate criminal or moral categories as tools to test qualifications for citizenship; institutes U.S. immigration law’s far-reaching “good moral character” inquiry; includes a clause related to criminal gangs, and requires comprehensive criminal background checks—all with no limitation as to how far back immigration officials can search to find something to disqualify you (the adoptee).”

That’s quite a high standard that adoptees have to meet.


Imagine a family with both biological and adopted children. The non-adopted sibling who committed those offenses would not be deported, yet the international adoptee would, even after having served their sentence. 

American flag

How are the supporters of this bill justifying this?

And how are they supporting legislation that does not provide a path back to the U.S. for international adoptees who have been deported?

Relatively speaking, the number of deported international adoptees is small, though global. They served their time in terms of whatever crime they committed. One has died by violence in Brazil; one had died by suicide in Korea. Many are deeply lonely and struggling mightily, having been sent back to a country where they have no family, don’t speak the language, and have great difficulty finding work.

Deportation is something that should never happen to international adoptees–unless you believe that these adoptees were never really part of their families.

Is that what the supporters of this CIA bill believe?

Sen. Lee notes that the National Council for Adoption supports this bill. He also names the Barker Adoption Foundation and Holt International among the adoption agencies endorsing the bill.

My children (all adults now) were adopted through Barker. I am puzzled to see that NCFA, Barker, and Holt support legislation that would still deport international adoptees, and that would not allow deported adoptees to return.

Do these agencies not believe adoptees are full members of their adoptive families? Are they okay with adoptees, whom the agencies placed with U.S. families, being deported, because the adoptees did not obtain citizenship through no fault of their own?

The United States has adopted the most children internationally, and is the only country that deports international adoptees.

I am puzzled by the support of adoption agencies for this bill, which is harmful to adoptees. I will continue to try to figure this out, and will write more soon. If anyone has any insight, please let me know.

Holt International Agency Sued by Adoptive Parents of Child Placed from Thailand

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According to Adoption Mosaic, a Pennsylvania adoptive family has sued Holt International adoption agency, alleging that the family was misled about the medical and psychological needs of a child from Thailand that Holt placed with them.

Here’s is the link their post on Facebook, and on Instagram.

Screenshot of Adoption Mosaic
Facebook Post

Adoption Mosaic notes:

“While this lawsuit centers on one family’s experience, it also raises broader questions that many adoptees, first families, adoptive parents, advocates, and researchers have been asking for decades:

• What information is shared, and what isn’t?

• How transparent are adoption agencies throughout the adoption process?

• What accountability exists when families receive incomplete or misleading information?

• How can we better protect children and families while centering ethics over placement?

As this case unfolds, it has the potential to become an important moment in the ongoing conversation about transparency, ethics, and reform within intercountry adoption.”

Holt is one of the largest adoption agencies In the US, and perhaps the world. In recent time, they have been under fire, including last week when a group of adult adoptees held a “funeral” for Holt at their Eugene, OR, office.

The Eugene, Or, based newspaper Register Guard also has stories about the Holt lawsuit, behind a paywall,

This recent Pennsylvania case is not the first wrongful adoption suit that Holt has faced. In 2019, Adam Crapser was the first Korean adoptee to sue Holt in Korea. Last year, a Korean birth mother sued Holt.

Holt, of course, is not the only adoption agency that has been sued for wrongful adoption. My understanding is that these lawsuits have been filed since the late 1980’s in connection with U.S. adoptions, including from foster care. More recently, international adoptions have also been the subject of these lawsuits, which involve charges of fraud, inaccurate and undocumented medical conditions; coercion, exploitation, and more.

While the suits have historically been brought primarily by adoptive parents, there are increasing examples of suits from adoptees and from birth parents. And there are ramifications: The Netherlands decided to ban foreign adoptions completely by 2030 after lawsuits revealed fraud, corruption, kidnapping, and other abuses.

Adult Adoptees Hold “Funeral for Holt” International Adoption Agency

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On July 24, a group of international adoptees held a “Funeral for Holt” International adoption agency outside Holt’s Eugene, OR, office.

According to KEZI.com News, the protestors sought to acknowledge what they called the “slow death” of international adoptions.

From KEZI News.

International adoptions to the United States have declined dramatically in recent years, from a high of nearly 23,000 in 2004 to about 1,200 in 2024. That decline is reflected in other so-called “receiving” countries as well, such as Western Europe and Canada.

Why stage a protest at Holt? Holt International adoption agency is largely known for starting international adoptions from South Korea in 1956, after the Korean War. Holt has placed some 40,000 children for adoption, making its reputation as the largest adoption agency in the world.

Recently, Holt and other adoption agencies have come under fire for those thousands of placements. The Associated Press did a series on Korean adoptions, alleging that “fraud – fake paperwork, stolen babies, switched identities – was pervasive throughout a program that sent 200,000 Korean babies for adoption to the West. The questionable or downright unethical practices were tacitly encouraged by Western countries who wanted to keep the flow of children coming.”

South Korea’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission has been investigating human rights abuses in intercountry adoption for several years, working with international Korean adoptees from Europe, the U.S., and Australia. According to NBC News, “South Korea’s truth commission says government is responsible for fraud and abuse in foreign adoptions.”

Further, the adult adoptees at the Holt protest called for the abolition of adoption, as well as increased transparency and accountability. In Europe especially, and increasingly in the U.S., Australia, and Canada, adult adoptees have been calling for an end to international adoptions. They cite the multi-billion adoption agency system as one that holds an inordinate and inappropriate amount of power, exploiting poor families, commodifying children, and erasing cultural, linguistic, and historic ties. Increasing numbers of adult adoptees cite fraud and corruption in their own adoptions, as well as trauma that is too often ignored or dismissed. Many advocates call for family preservation, as well as reparations, accurate family records, and substantial services to first families, who are often the most invisible and voiceless in the adoption process.

Sweden, The Netherlands, Denmark, Switzerland, Norway, and France are among the countries which have suspended or ended international adoptions, due to trafficking, corruption, and fraud. The adult adoptees in those countries have been speaking out for several years, and it may be that we will see more protests, like the one at Holt, here in the United States.

No one, and I’d include the most fervent adoption abolitionist, wants any child to suffer, to be abused, to be forgotten, to be unsafe, to be without medical care. The system of international adoption as we have known it in the past is coming to an end. There are many voices calling for many solutions and approaches. We’d do well to listen to the voices of adult adoptees and to their original families, if we are to create the much-needed, and inevitable, changes in the way we care for vulnerable children.

Good News, Bad News: Adoption-Immigration Updates

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Your response to this news depends on your perspective about adoption. Do you support adoption through the lifetime of adoptees, or only when the babies and children arrive?

Per my post How Does the Recent U.S. Freeze on Visas from 75 Countries Affect International Adoptees?, the Trump Administration recently announced that immigrant visas from 75 countries are being frozen.

The freeze thus affected international adoptees in the process of being adopted: they are considered immigrants seeking permanent U.S. citizenship.

While international adoption numbers have dropped significantly in recent years, some countries–such as Colombia, Brazil, Ghana, Jamaica, Nigeria, Thailand, Cameroon, Haiti, and others–still send children to the U.S. for adoption. That was paused when the immigrant visa freeze was put into effect.

The State Department yesterday announced an adoption exception to the visa freeze:

“Effective January 21, 2026, the Department of State paused visa issuances to immigrant visa applicants who are nationals of 75 countries.

President Trump and his Administration support families and intercountry adoption.

In countries where the issuance of immigrant visas is currently limited or paused, children being adopted by Americans can qualify for an exception under the National Interest Exception. (Emphasis mine.)

These American families should continue the normal adoption process.  They should submit visa applications and attend consular interviews.  They do not need to take other additional steps to be considered for a case-by-case exception under the National Interest Exception.

For additional details, visit travel.state.gov here.”

Why is this good news/bad news?

It’s good news to the families whose adoptions were in process. I hope it’s good news for the children being adopted. I hope their adoptions have no fraud or coercion connected to them. I hope the children are well cared for here.

It’s good news for the National Council for Adoption, which lobbied for this exception, and for the adoption agencies who did so as well. It’s bad news for all the other potential immigrants from those 75 countries.

It’s a carve out, an exception, an opening of a door. I’ve no doubt there is an emotional factor here, especially for folks who see adoption as only wonderful.

I get why folks don’t want to acknowledge the struggles that adoption causes for some adoptees, or the role that fraud, money, and corruption have played in international adoption.

Those images of sweet babies being adopted into American homes are powerful.

Those sweet babies grow up. Even in the most loving of adoptive homes, adoptees may feel like outsiders. They may yearn to reconnect with their original family and heritage. They may deal with a lack of medical history that shows mental illness or other conditions. They may deal with ambiguous or other forms of grief. And, I know, they may roll through life just fine.

Some international adoptees, whether from loving or abusive adoptive homes, will be deported. Some have been, some have died, some will be deported in the days to come.

That State Department press release says “President Trump and his Administration support families and intercountry adoption.”

A sleeping infant in a pink onesie and hat secured in a car seat, with a soft focus on the baby's face and hands.

I’d guess most members of the U.S. Congress also support families and intercountry adoption.

Yet the Congress has not, for over 15 years, passed legislation to grant citizenship to all international adoptees.

Could a “National Interest Exception” for little child adoption visas extend possibly to adult adoptee citizenship?

Will the National Council for Adoption and adoption agencies mount a significant advocacy campaign for citizenship for all international adoptees, as they did for the little children to arrive here with their “forever families”? Will more adoptive parents, including those whose children are U.S. citizens, speak out and use their power to insist on citizenship for all international adoptees?

Will the Congress pass and the President sign the “Protect Adoptees and American Families” act? Please urge your members of Congress to sign on to the bill, especially Republicans,

Or will the news continue only to be bad for adult adoptees, now in their 40’s, 50’s and older, who did not acquire citizenship through no fault of theirs?

Mike is not the only adoptee who’s been deported, and I urge you to support the work of Adoptees for Justice to help all international adoptees obtain citizenship. Adoptees should have the same rights and privileges as other family members.

In the almost 4 years since we’ve been running this campaign, folks have donated over $5000, for which we are very grateful. Mike has used the funds for legal and medical expenses, as well as occasionally for living expenses, to survive alone at 63 years old of age. Please donate, as we are beginning to run low on funds. Even a small amount is deeply appreciated, and will be used responsibly. Many thanks.

Portrait of a middle-aged man with a serious expression, wearing a light-colored polo shirt, set against a plain background.

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Adoptee Remembrance Day 2025

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Today is Adoptee Remembrance Day, designed to honor and remember adoptees who have died, who have been deported, who are survivors of the Troubled Teen Industry, who are incarcerated, who have been abandoned after being adopted, and those dealing with mental illness and/or substance abuse. We honor and remember all the forms of loss in the adoption community.

My post today is drawn essentially from my 2024 post about Adoptee Remembrance Day. The reasons for the day remain the same, and I am grateful for all those, especially adopted people, who promote awareness and the need for this day.

In the words of Pamela Karanova, the U.S. adoptee who founded Adoptee Remembrance Day, “While our primary goal is to uplift the legacy of those who are no longer with us, we also seek to share the truth of how adoption has impacted each of us. October 30th is our day of truth, transparency, and remembrance—a day for adoptees around the world to come together and be seen.”

What can you do to observe this day? There are many wonderful suggestions here. I’ve drawn some ideas below from the Adoptee Remembrance page. Please consider these actions, and share them with others.

  • Pause for a moment of silence for adoptees who have died.
  • Donate to help Mike Davis, who was adopted by a U.S. Army officer and was deported to Ethiopia in 2005. He has never met his grandchildren, and hasn’t been his wife and children for many years.

Twelve years ago yesterday, the parents of Ethiopian adoptee Hanna Williams were sentenced to lengthy jail terms for Hanna’s death. So many of keep Hanna in our hearts.

Adoptee Remembrance Day is “a beacon of awareness, remembrance, and solidarity.” Deep gratitude to those who work tirelessly to help and support adopted people around the globe.

Research on Ethiopian Adoption: An Informal 9-Page List

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If you’ve ever wondered about research on Ethiopian adoptions, here is my informal, incomplete, unannotated list of academic theses, sociology and law journal articles, books, and reports. Much of the research here, though certainly not all, has been done by Ethiopian scholars.

I am especially interested in research on Ethiopian birth parents. I’ve included in my list the few theses and articles I am aware of, and would welcome more.

For years, and as recently as yesterday, I have railed about the astonishing lack of adoption services to international birth parents. Ethiopian Adoption Connection/Beteseb Felega has worked hard in the realm of search, reunion, and other services. Funding is a challenge; I am among the donors, and invite others to contribute as well.

I do not have a strong sense that the pre-adoption services are stellar; I’d love to read research on what services were and are provided to international birth families by adoption agencies prior to placement. Many countries no longer send children for international adoption. Pre-adoption services remain important, and I am uncertain about their current and past uniformity or utility: has there been any evaluation?

Post-adoption services for international birth families, including in Ethiopia where international adoptions ended in 2018, remain vital, and almost nonexistent. I understand, intellectually, the reasons: many birth families live in remote areas, they speak various languages so would need translators, many are illiterate, many move without any useable address, and so on. Adoption agencies theoretically don’t have the infrastructure to provide services. I believe nonetheless they have a fierce ethical responsibility to do so.

The likelihood that will happen in any meaningful way is heartbreakingly small.

Original photo by Maureen McCauley. Addis Ababa, 2018.

Maybe, however, there will be more research. It’s not a substitute for services (such as informing mothers that their children are alive; or helping them deal with grief or shame), but more information will keep those birth families somewhere on our radar.

For now, here is my list. The research and articles cover a range of information on Ethiopian adoption. If you have additions or corrections, please let me know.

More Challenging Ideas for Adoptive Parents: Adoption is Trafficking; Adoption as a “Both/And”

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My post last week on 3 Challenging Ideas For Adoptive Parents was well-received–thank you to those who read it, shared it, and connected with me about it.

My perspective is as an adoptive parent. Wherever we are in the constellation, talking together in community about complex ideas is vital.

Here are more Challenging Ideas.

Adoptees can have a wonderful childhood, love their adoptive families, and hate adoption.

It’s a both/and proposition. This Psychology Today article is a good introduction to both/and thinking, if you’re not familiar with it. Here is an excerpt, not specific to adoption:

 “,,,multiple things can be true at the same time and that everybody has a right to their experience, regardless of what somebody else is experiencing…Both/and says that you can and almost certainly will feel more than one thing at a time. You can feel both grateful and resentful of the pressures of parenthood. You can feel both exhilarated by a high-powered position and overwhelmed by the sacrifices that it demands. You can feel both appreciative to stay home with your kids and trapped by its routines. You can both love your career and wish you had more time with family. You can feel both ambitious and content. 

Both/and honors the full complicated reality that life presents.”

The notion that an adoptee can hate adoption is a complicated one for adoptive parents to consider, since we were the ones who instigated and paid for the adoption; further, we (most of us) deeply love our children, and know that, if not for adoption, we would not have these children in our lives.

Adoptive parents might wonder: “We thought we were doing a good thing when we adopted, giving a child a better life. Did we do the wrong thing, engage in an unethical act?” Or “How can anyone hate adoption?” Or “Does this mean my adopted children don’t really love me?”

Both/and thinking, rather than Either/Or thinking, can help work through some of this complexity.

Elena Hall, an adopted person, wrote a children’s book titled Adoption is Both.

 Cindy Zhu Huijgen, adopted from China to the Netherlands, writes on Inter Country Adoptee Voices, “Why I am relieved that China terminated its adoption program.”

|Adoption is trafficking.

The notion of adoption as equivalent to trafficking is a tough concept, I’d argue. Still, when we consider the role of money (the amount, who’s paying, who’s pocketing), the power imbalances and ethical murkiness (if not outright corruption and fraud) that are too often part of adoption, we can understand the argument.

Adoption and child welfare services are a multi-billion dollar industry, according to IBIS World: “…industry-wide revenue is expected to climb…to $30.5 billion (emphasis added) through 2025.” There’s so much that can go wrong as a result. Poor and vulnerable people can easily be horribly victimized, lied to, deceived. While international treaties like The Hague Convention on Intercountry Adoption are designed to prevent trafficking, they are certainly not without flaws, and have many critics.

It is tempting, I’d argue, as an adoptive parent to say, “Well, we went through an accredited, reputable agency. There could not have been trafficking.” And if one hews to a tight definition of trafficking, the comparison with adoption can get clouded. Even so, the large sums of money exchanged; the power structure of who is placing children (or being coerced or deceived or bribed into doing so) and who is receiving children; the oversight (or lack thereof) of all the people involved in locating babies, children, and expectant mothers; and the reports of abused adopted children treated as slaves–all of this is deeply disturbing.

The National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges stated in The Disturbing Connection Between Foster Care and Domestic Child Sex Trafficking that “It has been estimated that 60% of all child sex trafficking victims have histories in the child welfare system. Youth without stable families are particularly vulnerable to being exploited by traffickers. Traffickers are targeting and recruiting youth directly from foster care, group homes, and residential placements.”

The book Finding Fernanda is a sobering read about international adoption from Guatemala. In an article titled “International Adoption or Child Trafficking?,” E.J. Graff reviews the book from a journalistic perspective: “Finding Fernanda is a true-crime page-turner about two mothers-Betsy Emanuel, an American, and Mildred Alvarado, a Guatemalan-accidentally united by a horrible adoption kidnapping. First-time author Erin Siegal uses the moving story to deliver investigative reportage at its finest, examining in tremendous detail exactly what happened to Betsy, to Mildred, and to the daughter that both of them lost.”

Graff notes that “Between 1998 and 2008, nearly 30,000 Guatemalan-born children (mostly infants and toddlers) were adopted by U.S. parents. In some years, that meant that an astonishing 1 out of 100 children born in Guatemala was adopted by an American family. For most of that time, everyone but the prospective adoptive parents knew-or in some cases actively chose to “unknow“-that the country’s international adoption system was a cesspool of corruption and crime, and motivated by money. Non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and news organizations reported in detail, repeatedly, that the country’s babies were systematically being bought, coerced, or even kidnapped away from families that wanted to raise them. But because healthy babies and toddlers kept on coming at a regular pace that kept up with demand in America, and because powerful Guatemalans were getting enormously rich off the baby trade, the system did not shut down until January 1, 2008.”

Guatemala is one country cited for trafficking; there have been many others. Here’s an article about issues in China: “Exploring variations and influencing factors of illegal adoption: A comparison between child trafficking and informal adoption.”

Against Child Trafficking “works to prevent child trafficking in intercountry adoption and to align international policies with the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child.” From the ACT web page: “In 2008, (ACT) was registered as an NGO in the Netherlands. It was established at the behest of the European Commission by Roelie Post, a civil servant at the European Commission” who investigated Romanian adoptions in the 1990’s for trafficking, and faced harsh opposition from the international adoption lobby. Post “forged a valuable partnership with Arun Dohle”, an adopted person from India raised in Germany. Together, they established ACT.”

A Reddit discussion “Can y’all break down the idea that adoption is trafficking?” includes many adopted people asking and answering questions.

Final Thoughts for Today

Again, this is a superficial presentation of dramatically complicated subjects. They are, though, being frequently discussed in many social media sites. They should not be dismissed.

Estrangement is increasingly common in the adoption community, a somewhat well-kept secret, though increasingly emerging into the mainstream. Folks who shy away from the challenging ideas may be among those who are estranged. We adoptive parents need to be able to sit with these tough notions, because our children may be doing exactly that as well.

I welcome your thoughts on these issues, and will be offering more Challenging Ideas soon. Turns out there are quite a few. Take good care, everyone.

How Can We Get Justice for Begidu Morris, the Ethiopian Adoptee Killed at 10 Years Old?

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My dear friend Ferehiwot Tsagaye, an Ethiopian adoptee, said this on a Facebook post:

This could’ve been me.

Begidu Morris was a 10-year-old Ethiopian adoptee—just like I once was. But instead of being protected, he was locked in a closet, starved, and abused until his little body couldn’t take it anymore.

And yet… his adoptive parents are still free.

I’ve been fighting for years to help adoptees reconnect with their roots, their families, and their identities—because stories like Begidu’s are not rare.

Too many of us were adopted into silence, pain, and racism, behind a smile and a church pew. We were told to be grateful while we were breaking inside.

As an adoptee and an advocate, I refuse to let his story be forgotten.

We will be the voice he was never given.

We will fight for the justice he never received.

We will demand accountability—for Hana, for Begidu, for all of us.

Enough is enough.

Beautifully said, Ferehiwot.

Many Ethiopian adoptees have spoken out for Begidu. I am hopeful that *all* of us in the adoption community will do so: adoptive parents, adoption agencies, adoption-related organizations.

I posted recently about Begidu, who died in March 2022, whose death was ruled a homicide, and whose case has not been brought to trial.

From A Life Discounted: the tragic story of Begidu Morris, “According to the DCF child fatality summary, Begidu Morris collapsed at home in Lee County, Florida, on March 17, 2022 and was transported to Golisano Children’s Hospital. He was diagnosed with subdural hematoma, hypothermia, cardiac arrest, acute respiratory failure, retinal hemorrhages, and metabolic acidosis….Three years after Begidu’s death, the police have made no arrests in the case.”

From the Child Fatality Report, March 2022: “The facts of the case were reviewed with the State’s Attorney’s office and ultimately, no action was taken as the perpetrator of the abuse could not be determined at that time.”

Yes, that’s right: The Child Fatality Report ruled Begidu’s death a homicide, and determined that either the adoptive mother or the teenage sibling was likely responsible. The State’s Attorney’s office then moved no further toward justice for Begidu.

So what should and can we do?

My hope is that other adoptive parents like me will feel called to find justice for an Ethiopian adoptee. When we adopted from Ethiopia, we made a connection with the country and the children, the families, the culture. While our priority is to our children; I believe that our compassion and energy should extend to other Ethiopian adoptees as well. Begidu was somebody else’s adopted child: adoptive parents who tortured the little boy, who died after 5 days in a hospital, perhaps alone.

He seemed to have no one speaking up for him when he died.

We can spread the word about this case, posting on Facebook or on blogs or in adoptive parent groups.

We can email the State’s Attorney in Florida who has jurisdiction for the case, who apparently decided there was nothing more that could be done for Begidu, despite the determination of horrific abuse and homicide. Her name is Amira Fox. She is the State’s Attorney for five Florida counties, including Lee County, where Begidu died. Her web site is here. Ms. Fox’s email is stateattorney@sao20.org.

Here’s a recent post from her Facebook page. I am glad to see she’s #AllAboutTheKids.

If you are in Florida, emailing and otherwise contacting Ms. Fox’s office is especially useful. That said, getting the word out that folks across the country are concerned about this is also important.

A brief email is fine. If anyone wants help drafting one, I am happy to help.

Emails can also be sent to Governor Ron DeSantis, and to other federal and state representatives.

Share this story with news outlets, in Florida, Ethiopia, and elsewhere: Addis Standard, CNN, 60 Minutes, New York Times, Washington Post, etc. Contact The News-Press, the newspaper for Lee County–Fort Meyers area where Begidu died, and ask why a search for “Begidu Morris” shows no results, yet “Amira Fox” yields many.

We can recognize the emotional labor of Ethiopian and other adoptees who speak out about the case, and the pain it causes for them. I am grateful to each of them.

Here are some of those, in addition to Ferehiwot, who have spoken out:

Hakima Alem posted this on TikTok.

Lidet O’Connor (host of Ethiopian Adoptees Unapologetically Unfiltered podcast) posted this on TikTok.

“Who Protects Ethiopian Children Adopted by Strangers? Begidu and the Failed Promise of Ethiopian Adoption” by Kassaye Berhanu (Substack)

Begidu Morris by Moses Farrow (Instagram)

Justice for Begidu from Adoptee_Diaries (Instagram)

If you speak out in any way asking for Justice for Begidu, please share that action with others. I’d especially like to hear about the actions of adoptive parents, adoption agencies, and adoption-related organizations.

This little child, abused and killed by his adoptive family, deserves justice, and must not be forgotten.

Data Breach of Gladney Adoption Center Exposes Confidential Information

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The notion of confidentiality of adoption records is sorely challenged these days, not only by DNA testing but also by data breaches.

A Wired magazine article reported that Gladney Center for Adoption’s “Data Exposure Revealed Information About Children and Parents.“

Screenshot

In late June, Jeremiah Fowler, a data-breach hunter, “came across a publicly accessible database on line that seemed to contain information about adoption,” identified it as Gladney, and notified them. Within a couple of days, the site was “silently secured.”

Fowler was, according to Wired, ‘particularly alarmed to see adoption-related data, because the trove included details like the identities of some children’s biological parents, data on individuals’ medical and mental health status, information about interactions with Child Protective Services, and even records referencing court orders. The database also included…identifying information like names, addresses, phone numbers, email addresses, and unique identifiers assigned to children’s cases.” The trove contained more than 1.1 million records and was 2.49 GB, the article states.

Gladney Adoption Center is based in Texas, is over 135 years old, and is licensed in 12 states.

I did not find information about the data breach on their blog or their webpage when I looked at it today.

Gladney’s statement in the Wired article by chief operating officer Lisa Schuessler included this: “…in the case of any determination of sensitive information…we notify all impacted individuals.”

The efforts of adoption agencies and adoption attorneys to keep records secure and confidential are not at all guaranteed to succeed. I don’t know how Gladney handled this breach with adoptees, birth families, and adoptive parents. It sure seems to me to have chilling ramifications, including for private and public agencies of all sizes. The adoption community’s confidence in “Confidentiality” is eroding. Access to information could come in unexpected ways. Adoption agencies and lawyers need to be transparent and proactive about these realities.

Cam Lee Small on “Why Adoptees Need a New Kind of Village”: TedX Talk

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Let’s “make more space for the adoptee voice, so they can be brought up and witnessed in the light, and be met compassionately with the resources they deserve.” That’s one powerful line of many that were shared by Cam Lee Small, MS, LPC, at his recent TedX Talk, Why Adoptees Need A New Kind of Village.

Cam is multi-faceted: an author (The Adoptee’s Journey: From Loss and Trauma to Healing and Empowerment), a licensed clinician, a transnational transracial adoptee from South Korea, and an advocate for adoptees and for adoption literacy.

His TedX Talk was powerful for me as an adoptive parent, and I believe that may also be true for adoptees and birth/first parents. He is compassionate and insightful, balancing his lived experience with years of professional training and expertise.

In the TedX Talk, he uses anecdotes from adoptee summer camps (sometimes the only places that adoptees see others who look like them and who are all adopted as well) along with powerful recommendations to create that vital village to raise a child.

While noting the variety of adoptee stories and experiences, Cam contends that “adoptees need tools that destigmatize mental health support and honestly address how history, loss, early adversity, and adoption can have an impact on nervous system development, brain and body functioning, racial and ethnic socialization, identity, search and reunion.” He calls for “ethical DNA testing” in the U.S. and around the globe so that people who have been relinquished can find their families. Also needed are “quality language interpretation skills” for when adoptees and those who relinquished them find each other.

All adoptees need access to their own health records and to “targeted health screenings, especially when records are kept from them or are falsified,” as happens so often.

It’s a brilliant talk. Please listen, learn, and share.

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