Tag Archives: Ethiopian adoption

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.

Aselefech Evans, MSW–Clinician, Co-Editor “Lions Roaring,” Writer, Ethiopian Adoptee, More–Is Now on Substack

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Aselefech Evans, MSW, LSWAIC, has launched on Substack.

From her first post: “…I am Aselefech, proudly Oromo from the Oromia region of Ethiopia. Mother, Daughter, Auntie, Author (Lions Roaring Far from Home), family preservationist, and Black clinician—a title I hold with pride, as we make up only 4% of the field—and the owner of Stillness Therapy.”

Aselefech will be focusing on adoption, on neurodivergence, and on eating disorders and recovery. Her Substack is titled “From Stillness to Storytelling,” She will be writing primarily about three areas: adoption, eating disorders and recovery and neurodivergence. Aselefech has lived experience and extensive professional training in all three areas.

She notes “I’ve found deep connections with others whose paths to self-understanding have been anything but linear. I’ll share reflections, resources, and community voices that honor the diversity of our brains and experiences.”

Please read, subscribe to, share, and learn from this new Substack writer.

In full disclosure, Aselefech is my daughter. I could not be more proud of her. She brings a knowledgeable, compassionate heart to her writing and her work.

Update on Mike Davis, Deported Ethiopian Adoptee

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Mike is, of course, much more than a deported Ethiopian adoptee. He’s a very good person, husband, father, grandfather, an entrepreneur who ran a pizza place, a gas station, a convenience store, and more. He and his adoptive father, a U.S. Army Master Sergeant, both thought Mike had citizenship. Bureaucratic errors apparently won out. When Mike got in trouble with the law in 1991, he served his time, and has had no legal trouble since. Nonetheless, he was deported, alone and without money, employment, or knowledge of the language, to Ethiopia in 2005.

Mike does not complain about his life there, but it is very hard. He has learned Amharic, and he has found ways to provide food and basic shelter.

In June 2023, we started a GoFundMe for Mike. We’ve raised about $5000 since then, and that money has made an enormous difference for Mike. He’s been able to get medicines, and to see doctors for his gout and dentists for his teeth pain. The funds have helped with legal costs, including filing fees for documents and other attorney charges. He’s used the funds to get shoes and socks, as well as a water tank and water for his home.

If you have helped in any way, many thanks!

Thank you also to all the folks who have visited with him. Recently, a group of Ethiopian adoptees spent a bit of time with Mike in Addis. The young people are part of the Ethiopian Adoptees Foundation, and Mike loved visiting with them. Thank you to Mari and each of the wonderful visitors.

Thank you to the EAF visitors!

Visitors like this, plus the adoptees who visit Addis with their families, mean the world to Mike.

His efforts to return home have not yet been successful, especially in the current US political climate. You’d think a 63-year-old man who was adopted to the US as a little boy, who committed a crime over 30 years ago, who took responsibility for his transgression and served his time, and who was deported over 20 years ago: you’d think he’d be allowed to return to his wife, children, and grandchildren. That hasn’t yet happened. We keep Mike and his family in our hearts. We are deeply grateful to his lawyers. We remain hopeful and optimistic. We appreciate all the prayers and good wishes.

Over the last two years, Mike has been frugal and thoughtful about his expenses, spending small amounts on life necessities: rent and food mostly. He is always gracious and appreciative when visitors bring him socks, tee shirts, and the occasional bag of Snickers bars.

Please help us keep Mike’s spirits up. His health is fair, but being elderly and alone in Ethiopia is not easy. His legal costs have added up, and we are hopeful that there will be good news.

We have had no donations for 6 months.

If you can donate, that would be wonderful, Even small amounts make a big difference. Please share the GoFundMe with others as well, and please send good wishes that Mike can return home.

You can read Mike’s essay, “An Ethiopian Adoptee Deported to Ethiopia,” in our anthology Lions Roaring Far From Home. All revenue from sales goes to help Ethiopian adoptees.

“Lions Roaring” on Goodreads: 4.8 Stars Rating

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We are proud of our book, Lionss Roaring Far From Home: An Anthology by Ethiopian Adoptees” for many reasons. Its sales have greatly surpassed the majority of independently published books. On Amazon, it has a 4.8 Star rating. Revenue from sales goes to Ethiopian adoptees; we’ve contributed close to $2000 to GoFundMe and similar to help cover school costs, pay rent, pay medical bills, contribute to homeland travel, and more.

Cover art of Lions Roaring book. Ethiopian woman next to a roaring lion.

We also have a 4.8 Star rating on Goodreads, which is wonderful. We have 15 ratings and 3 reviews there.

Many thanks to everyone who has bought, read, shared, left stars, and supported our groundbreaking book.

Thank you as always also to Ethiopian artist Nahosenay Negussie for the brilliant cover art. We are so grateful to our Ethiopian community.

It’s an amazing book. Please share it with others!

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.

Why Aren’t the Adoptive Parents of Begidu Morris in Jail for His Tragic Death?

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They should be held accountable for this little boy’s death.

Ethiopian adoptee Begidu Morris died in 2022 at 10 years old. He weighed 44 pounds: the average 10 year old weighs around 65 pounds. He was covered with scars and burn marks. He had multiple physical traumas, and certainly unimaginable emotional injuries as well–conditions that no child should ever have to endure.

Consuela and Jack Morris, his adoptive parents, have never been charged, though Florida Child Protective Services found that “the parents either participated in the abuse that led to the child’s injuries and subsequent death, or they participated in concealing the horrific abuse and neglect that he suffered.”

In other words, no one has ever been held officially accountable for this little child’s horrific death. Whoever is guilty is living without punishment, free, without justice for their crimes.

@hakima_alem

Link to Child Fatality Report https:// livescutshort.org/wp-content/uploads/ 2024/04/2022-084517.pdf #justiceforbegidu #fyp #adoption #ethiopian_tik_tok #habeshatiktok #begidu #protectchildren #ethiopian_tik_tok🇪🇹🇪🇹🇪🇹🇪🇹

♬ original sound – Hakima Alem

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.”

“The CPS investigation concluded that “[a]lthough it was not able to be determined with certainty who inflicted the injury/injuries that led to this child’s death, it can be concluded that the parents either participated in the abuse that led to the child’s injuries and subsequent death, or they participated in concealing the horrific abuse and neglect that he suffered.” It found the parents Jack and Consuelo Morris responsible for Begidu’s death and for “bizarre punishments,” internal injuries, physical injuries, medical neglect, ‘failure to thrive/malnutrition/dehydration,’ failure to protect, and inadequate supervision.”

“Three years after Begidu’s death, the police have made no arrests in the case. The DCF Investigation Summary states that CPS was involved in multiple meetings, including with the State Attorney’s Office (SAO) and that

“[u]ltimately no action was taken by the SAO as the perpetrator of abuse could not be determined based on the information that was available at the time of their staffing. There were two individuals (the mother and [the brother]) in the home capable of causing the head trauma to the child; the individual responsible for the abuse could not be determined.

As the Child Welfare Monitor article states, “The lack of charges is almost incredible. If they could not have charged anyone with the actual homicide, it is hard not to understand how the parents could not have been charged with multiple counts of child abuse, charges that surely exist in Florida as they do in other states. It is hard not to ask the question, as one child advocate (Dawn Post) put it, could this happen if Begidu were White? The State’s Attorney denied my request for the investigation records on the grounds that ‘there is still an active investigation.’ But it is hard to believe that the police are still seriously working on this case.”

Share his story: do not let Begidu be forgotten. #JusticeForBegidu

Here are other important sources of information:

“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)

A Podcast With Ethiopian Adoptee Mike Davis, Speaking Out for Citizenship for All International Adoptees

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Mike Davis, a 61-year-old Ethiopian adoptee deported to Ethiopia in 2005, did a wonderful job in talking about his hopes for citizenship for himself and all international adoptees, on a podcast with Unraveling Adoption.

I was honored when Mike asked me to join him on the podcast, hosted by Beth Syverson. (Be sure to check out Beth’s other podcasts and resources on Unraveling Adoption.) I appreciated Beth’s compassion and openness. Mike was focused and strong, for which I give him great credit given the harshness of his situation.

You can help Mike with his legal and medical issues via this GoFundMe. All the money goes to Mike, for legal expenses as well as doctor bills and medicines. It is not easy to be alone in a country far from family and friends, and to have significant health issues. Mike has been working with Adoptees for Justice and their lawyers (thank you!) to, we deeply hope, return home to his wife, children, grandchildren, and friends. Many thanks to all who are able to donate, and for sharing the GoFundMe.

If you want more information on ways to help all international adoptees gain citizenship, check out this blog post.

International adoptees prior to 2000 were not granted automatic citizenship, contrary to what many in and out of the adoption community might think. Some have been deported. Many fear being deported. Please join Mike and others in advocating for citizenship for all international adoptees. Please help Mike and all deported adoptees come back home.

Visiting Hana Williams’ grave, and reflecting on her isolation

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Ethiopian adoptee Hana Williams (named Hana Alemu by her Ethiopian family) is buried in Union Cemetery in Sedro-Woolley, Washington. Her adoptive parents were sentenced in 2015 to decades in jail for Hana’s death and for the abuse of another Ethiopian adoptee.

Both had joined the Williams’ family in 2008, and Hana died in May 2011.

I attended almost every day of the trial back in 2015, and have blogged many times about Hana’s death.

Yesterday, on my way back from Anacortes to Seattle, I stopped to visit Hana’s gravesite, as I have done frequently over the years.

Hana’s adoptive family home in Sedro-Woolley, about 70 miles north of Seattle, was in a remote area not easily accessible by anyone other than those who live in the gated community.

She lived in so much isolation during her three short years in the United States: separated from Ethiopia, from the Ethiopian community in Washington, from the Ethiopian adoptee community here. The Williamses’ home was on acres of land, so the WIlliamses’ severn biological children plus the two Ethiopian adoptees had room to roam, though only with siblings.

Hana lived in a place surrounded by beautiful trees and blue skies, but soon after she was adopted, she was locked in a barn, locked in a shower room, locked ultimately in a closet, for hours and hours. She died from malnutrition and hypothermia in family’s back yard, having been sent outside as yet another punishment.

Now, in death, Hana has peace, or so some of us pray.

Her burial spot is isolated as well, which I find poignant at each visit. It took a long time for the family to get a marker for the grave, The site itself is distant even from any other graves.

Hana’s horrific death is probably the top reason that adoptions from Ethiopia ended in 2018.

I pray that we all hold Hana in our hearts. No child, no adoptee, should ever suffer what she went through.

An Ethiopian Adoptee is Raising Funds for His Ethiopian Cousin’s Vital Surgery: Please Help

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Reshid Huth is a young adult Ethiopian adoptee from Afar, adopted to the U.S.. Reshid has returned to Ethiopia several times since his adoption, including a recent solo trip, where he met a 4-year-old cousin, Hassen.

Hassen has a serious heart condition called Tetralogy of Fallot. He needs an urgent, complex surgery.

Reshid has made it his goal to help his little cousin get the life-saving surgery he needs. A hospital in Addis Ababa can perform the surgery

Now, Reshid is working to raise funds for Hassen’s life-saving heart surgery, and for the follow- up cleft palate surgery.

Every donation brings hope to Hassen and his family.

And, it helps Reshid meet his goal to help. I am absolutely inspired by Reshid and his efforts to help his little cousin and family.

Please donate to Reshid’s GoFundMe. Please share the GoFundMe link with others. Many thanks.

Personal note: I am the grandmother of a 4-year-old, and I can only imagine what Hassen’s family is going through. I am also friends with Meghan Walsh, Reshid’s adoptive mom. Meghan is the founder of Roots Ethiopia, and a strong proponent of family and of Ethiopia. I’ve “borrowed” some of the language here from a post by Meghan, and want to acknowledge that. Please help Hassen; he is surrounded by love and compassion, and needs this life-saving surgery.

Deported Ethiopian Adoptee and the Need for Congressional Action: WABE

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An important new story from WABE, an Atlants-based NPR/PBS station: Georgia Adoptee deported due to legal loophole that Congress is now trying to fix.”

The story focuses on Mike Davis, born in 1962 and adopted from Ethiopia by a U.S. Army sergeant in 1972. Mike spent his life in America believing he was a U.S. citizen. In 1993, he was committed a crime, went to a boot camp, and was on probation for three years. Then the United States in 2005 deported him to a country he no longer knew at all, leaving his wife, his children, his home, his businesses, and now his grandchildren behind.

As WABE notes, “Davis is one of tens of thousands of adults in the U.S. who did not receive automatic citizenship with adoption….Congress is now trying to address this loophole in federal law that has left many adoptees in limbo.”

Congress has had many opportunities in the past to close this inequitable, unethical loophole. I am among so many folks who hope that our Congress will recognize that all children brought here for purposes of international adoption, with the legal oversight of both the U.S. and the child’s country of origin, should have automatic citizenship.

Per WABE: “Nick Greene is a California-based adoptee who advocates for citizenship for all adoptees. He said sometimes, people find out they aren’t citizens only when they try to apply for Social Security or Medicare. Under the Child Citizenship Act, adoptees born before Feb. 27, 1983, are not able to obtain citizenship through their citizen parents.

“So that’s going to be like 40, 50, 60-somethings,” he said. “You grew up as an American. You lived as an American for 60-plus years. For some of them it’s been a decade they’ve been just doing this battle.”

Congress is considering two pieces of legislation that would retroactively grant citizenship to adoptees who did not automatically get it when they came to the U.S. The legislation also allows for people who were deported, like Mike Davis, to repatriate to the U.S. where he would be reunited with his family.”

Adoption legislation affects adoptees, who had no agency over the decisions made for them when they were minors. The legislation also affects the children and grandchildren of adoptees, and adoptees themselves when they are deep into adulthood, including at retirement age.

You can help by learning more, via Adoptees for Justice, Asian Americans Advancing Justice-Atlanta, and Adoptees United.

You can also help by donating and spreading the word about this GoFundMe for Mike, which is helping with his legal and medical costs. Many thanks.

Mike Davis is among the writers of “Lions Roaring Far From Home: An Anthology by Ethiopian Adoptees.”