Would you adopt a Haitian orphan? Do they really need us?
Before the quake, Haiti had about 380,000 children in orphanages and now the U.S. State Department is estimating there could be tens of thousands more children left without parents.
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton says:
“One area we are urgently focused on is the plight of Haitian orphans,” she said of the thousands or perhaps tens of thousands of children who were left without parents after the devastating 7.0-magnitude earthquake that struck last Tuesday.
” ‘We will also be doing everything we can to unite the many children and families that have been separated in the aftermath of the earthquake and to do all that we can to expedite the travel of children who were in the line for adoption who have a legal, permanent home [or] guardianship waiting for them. We will not let red tape stand in the way of helping those in need.’ ”
“According to The New York Times, that process was already under way, as a group of 53 Haitian orphans touched down in Pittsburgh on Tuesday, the first of what is expected to be a large wave of children who will arrive in the U.S. after the country loosened its policy on visa requirements to expedite the adoption of parentless Haitian children by American families. It normally takes up to three years to adopt a child from Haiti.”
According to a Canadian Web site France will immediately take in 276 children from quake-hit Haiti who had been matched with French parents for adoption, Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner said Wednesday.
While researching for this story I found another site from a children’s organization in Haiti saying that the situation is not as dire as the State Department is thinking and believes they will have far fewer children to place.
Here’s what SOS Children’s Villages reports on its Web site:
“Despite making a public statement discouraging people from trying to adopt earthquake orphans We have been inundated with offers from around the world from well meaning couples wanting to know how to set about adopting. Please could we make the following points very clearly:
- Despite exaggeration in the media by people who wish to make a dramatic story, the actual number of children orphaned by the earthquake is likely to be 5-10,000, based simply on the experience of other major disasters. After the tsunami reports of 1.5 m orphans from the same sources turned out to be quite false, with the final figure of about 5,400. There were similar ratios of overall fatality to number of orphans created in each country.
- There are hundreds of thousands of children in need of immediate help but most will have some traceable family somewhere. These children will need schools, homes and so on and longer term donations are needed to support them.
- Of the 5-10,000 orphans typically, with support from family strengthening programmes such as those we already run in Haiti, 80-90 % would have family whom they know in some position to care for them. This leaves perhaps 1000 newly orphaned children aged 0-18 from the earthquake the older of whom with have deep linguistic and cultural routes and would have a difficult time adapting to competitive Western schooling etc. We expect to end up with many of these older children, in the usual pattern of events. Perhaps 50 babies orphaned by the earthquake may be suitable for adoption whereas many children already orphaned were already in the process of adoption.
- The total number of fatalities from the earthquake is likely to exceed 200,000 which is 2% of the population of Haiti, with a heavy concentration in poor urban areas. The current number of orphaned and abandoned children in Haiti is about 380,000 of whom more than 2% have probably died in the disaster. There are therefore probably fewer actual orphans in Haiti as a result of this disaster, although the number is still horrific and the conditions of they and other children have deteriorated sharply.
- Children who have just been orphaned by the earthquake will not have been properly assessed with families traced etc until at least 18 months time, given the state of records and so on in Haiti.
Many thousands of couples worldwide have stated an interest in adopting an earthquake orphan. There is a huge mismatch between offer and actually need.”
I’m not sure what to make of the differential in numbers. I guess we will have a much better idea as the rescuers are able to match children up with their families. If there is a need, would you adopt an orphan from the Haitian earthquake? What would it mean to the children we already have?
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242 comments Add your comment
Preeta
January 21st, 2010
4:58 pm
If I were in a halfway decent position financially, you BET I would, as long as the child is not HIV+, that would be too much for me. Sorry, I am just being honest. I’m a strong advocate of adoption, anyway. Why have your own, just to prove you are a “real man” or a “real woman”, when there are so mant unloved children in the world? And if anyone gave me trouble about my adopting a child of a different race, they can just take a flying leap. Children of ALL races need & deserve love & care. I must admit that I am also hurt by comments such as “being able to give a child a good Christian home”. I am a devout Hindu & I do not consider myself a woman who would be an unfit mother
Denise
January 21st, 2010
5:01 pm
Hi. Yes I would adopt an Haitan Orphan IF I had the means to. I am an adoptive mother of a now 2-year old. She is the joy and center of our lives. However her adoption fees were quite heavy.
I’m currently taking a break from my teaching,to be at
SAHM. Jane, you’ll be happy to know we got our little angel from Atlanta,Georgia.
The events of Haiti have broken my heart and to see the children who are now parentless has affected me deeply. Adoption is a great journey and a wonderful opportunity.
DB you’ve got some anger issues. Life is too precious to spend your time spitting out fire at others that you do not know. But deep inside I think you really care or you wouldn’t have joined the discussion.
Logic, you’ve got a great heart. Don’t change.
Adoption is an awesome journey.
nineteensixtyfour
January 21st, 2010
5:05 pm
i would adopt a child, any age.. but am i missing something? who do you contact to find out how ?
Peachie
January 21st, 2010
5:06 pm
JATL — how can you say what you did about people not adopting a child who is black when all the ones I’ve seen on tv adopting from Haiti have been white. I want to know where are the blacks . . . why aren’t they adopting some of these orphans. I’m sure there must be some but I’ve not seen any.
Tiger needs me on his PR team
January 21st, 2010
5:08 pm
@Preeta…i don’t know..something about your proving someone is a “real man” comment I found quite offensive….and I don’t get offended easily! I think that having children, biological or otherwise, is an intensely personal decision, and no one has the right or privilege to question my motivations for wanting to have a child with my wife and not adopting.
by the way….I find it interesting that you singled out HIV+ as the ONE adoption deal breaker. Is there any other terminal illness (i.e. leukemia, cerebral palsy, etc.) that would make you say “no way” or is it just one with the stigma of HIV?
Tiger needs me on his PR team
January 21st, 2010
5:10 pm
@ Preeta…just to show I’m not picking on you, I think the “good Christian home” adoption philosophy is somewhat offensive as well.
FCM
January 21st, 2010
5:11 pm
Preeta I agree with you….as I said in my first post all children have certain basic needs. I see no reason why a non-Christian could not fit the bill. Even our resident atheists (they point out whom they are) can certainly be good parents (and I believe at least 2 of them are!). However remember as you read the posts that the USA is prodominately Christian and if you really read what the founders of the country wrote, we are based in Christian tradition…so it is common to think of that faith first.
Julia
January 21st, 2010
5:12 pm
This is a wake up call to ALL of us… We really need to drop to our knees and THANK GOD for our blessing and that we have a home with internet that we can get on here and discuss this. We are blessed by where we live and even our poorest in this country is wealthy over there….
Marla Cavanaugh
January 21st, 2010
5:12 pm
I’m a Mother of ten children, 7 of which I’ve adopted. These 7 have special needs of one kind or another. I feel I’ve been subjected to and have witnessed many different kinds of problems, so we’re up to a challenge. My husband and I were foster parents for 13 years and have had a total of 94 children during those years. We have a strong marraige and have raised 5 of our children to a successful and productive adulthood. Now that my home is half empty LOL I feel the urging to reach out to older children from places such as Haiti and the continent of Africa, or other places of great need.It is the older children many times, and the children who are disabled etc….who are often left behind.
Julia
January 21st, 2010
5:13 pm
Preeta that is about the most stupid thing I think I have ever heard in my life..
Julia
January 21st, 2010
5:15 pm
Marla thank you for all you have done in the lives of those children.. You really are a blessing.
Tiger needs me on his PR team
January 21st, 2010
5:16 pm
@ FCM….”resident atheist”…..I DIG that title!
Tiger needs me on his PR team
January 21st, 2010
5:17 pm
@Julia…..since I’m “resident atheist” can I just be really appreciative in general while I’m watching sportscenter?
New Stepmom
January 21st, 2010
5:19 pm
WOW, we have two children in our family who were adopted internationally and I cannot imagine life without them. I see the point that there are children here who need homes and I agree, but the poverty and devastation across the world (not just in Haiti) is unimaginable to those of us born and raised here. This does not mean that I think no mission work whould be done here, but it is comparing apples to oranges.
One of the children in my family was adopted from India and had a birth injury leaving her right arm unusable (fortunately with therapy here she is gaining great use of this limb). In India this would have left her to most likely become a slave or a prostitute. Her brother adopted from China was found on the border to Viet Nam. Since his heritage could not be determined by the Chinese, he would have suffered a similar fate. Although American orphans have a fate I cannot imagine, I know that most are better cared for than these children would have been if left to their own devices in their home countries.
What I do not understand is why older American children are not considered for adoption. Even adopting a child that is between 2 and 3 years old would help and would not be unlike most international adoptions. It seems that some of the length of time and red tape involved with American adoptions is because we will go overseas and come home with an older child of a different race, but we only want white infant babies that come from the US. It is a juxtaposition that I do not completely understand.
I applaud anyone that adopts. We are fortunate that I became pregnant easily and shocked all of my doctors. Our first child will be biologically ours, but we would consider adoption at a later time. We were getting our ducks in a row to begin exploring the option when we realized I had conceived. I also hope that the bans on gay partners adopting become passe. A family can be whomever, it does not have to be biological and I have seen gay couples provide better homes than some straight couples and this would provide more homes for children who need it.
Julia
January 21st, 2010
5:20 pm
yea, I will let you :)… but you get my drift for that right?? we are blessed :)
Tiger needs me on his PR team
January 21st, 2010
5:23 pm
@ Julia…I get a daily reminder of how fortunate I have it every day on the way to work seeing the sun rise on the Rockies….may not give me god, but it sure does make me like I’ve won the lottery of life.
FCM
January 21st, 2010
5:31 pm
@ Tiger well you were one of the 2 I believe are good parents. OH, and what I agreed with Preeta on was not her clauses to her adoption (ie HIV+), although I respect her right to decide for herself what she is willing to take on and what she isn’t in a child. It was her stance on the faith of the adoptive parent that I agreed too.
As to some of what you have asked, IF (and it is a big if) I were to adopt: I would consider, even prefer, and older child if I were to adopt. I would also prefer a female (since I already have an all female house) over a male. It has to do with already parenting the females and not having many male role models around for a male child to bond and learn from. I would have a harder time with a child with severe limitations (down syndrome, quadrapalegic, cancer, etc) but for me that has to do with time and money needed to raise a child with those issues. I would need a large quanity of both of those resources to raise a physically/medically challenged child.
Tara
January 21st, 2010
5:33 pm
Just a thought…
If you really, truly feel called to adopt (from Haiti or elsewhere) but think it’s financially impossible, I encourage you to research some possible financial assistance. There are grants available to adoptive couples, though most do require you to use your own resources as much as possible. My sister is a stay-at-home mom and her husband is a youth pastor and they are already raising two children, so they are by no means well off. But they are adopting a little boy. They have found many creative ways to make it financially doable.
I know it’s very expensive, but I just encourage anyone who really feels a desire to adopt not to be scared off by the cost. You just might be able to make it work. And it’s so worth it.
Tiger needs me on his PR team
January 21st, 2010
5:42 pm
@FCM…well thanks…seriously. And I respect that to Christians, the Christian aspect (or any other faith for that matter) of that home is indelibly tied to the definition of a good home. To us non christians (and atheists!) the tone sometimes comes off as a exclusional definition of a good home. And to some, it is…and other times, we’re just being hyper sensitive. In your case…I’m giving you the benefit of the doubt! ;-)
Tiger needs me on his PR team
January 21st, 2010
5:48 pm
did I actually write the “word” exclusional?????? Ohhhhhhh, Good Golly Miss Molly is going to suggest I go back to grammar and spelling 101! For the record, I mean exclusionary!
Tiger needs me on his PR team
January 21st, 2010
5:58 pm
@FCM…oh and by the way..there are some real good arguments out there to suggest that while many of the founding fathers were Christians, some had a real disdain for the evolution of the Christian religion. Thomas Jefferson had some real controversial statements on this….based on the quotes alone, you would really question his faith in the first place.
Tiger needs me on his PR team
January 21st, 2010
6:10 pm
“Question with boldness even the existence of God; because if there be one, he must more approve the homage of reason, than that of blindfolded fear.” – Thomas Jefferson in a letter to his nephew.
“Jefferson believed in the existence of a Supreme Being who was the creator and sustainer of the universe and the ultimate ground of being, but this was not the triune deity of orthodox Christianity. He also rejected the idea of the divinity of Christ, but as he writes to William Short on October 31, 1819, he was convinced that the fragmentary teachings of Jesus constituted the ‘outlines of a system of the most sublime morality which has ever fallen from the lips of man’” — http://www.monticello.org
Correct me if I’m wrong, but the acceptance of Jesus as the Son of God and Saviour is pretty much THE requirement to be a Christian. If that presumption is true…then Thomas Jefferson, our most important founding father, was not, in fact, a Christian.
But alas…I digress from the Haiti adoption topic….I apologize. ;-)
Julia
January 21st, 2010
6:14 pm
Was he not a Mason?
deidre_NC
January 21st, 2010
6:24 pm
if i had the money and the time to commit i would definately be looking into this. my kids are grown (mostly) and i would not mind adopting an older child….they are the ones who will fall trhough the cracks…it makes me sad…i just dont have the time or money to devote to this. i think an older child would bring some difficulties that would require more time devoted….not that a baby wouldnt, but id assume an older child would have some issues stemming from their way of life-the poverty and illnes they have seen and now this devasting earthquake…its all too sad….i have a friend who is over there ..he actually arrived when that 2nd earthquake hit and no one hs heard from in in a while..we are very worried..so those of you who pray please do so!
Susan Toben
January 21st, 2010
6:27 pm
Yes, my husband and I would be very interested in helping foster or adopt an orphan from Haiti. I have to admit that the info I just read makes the possibility seem remote. Maybe we just need to give it time. Maybe we all just need a “plug in” to the organizations actually handling the orphans that have just arrived in order to better assess the situation.
Guerline
January 21st, 2010
6:31 pm
To all out there, government officials, adoption agencies, churches, etc.
We have to proceed with caution on the adoption of the Haitian children. Many of us (Haitians) would rather that these children were raised in our culture. I know those non-Haitian families mean well for wanting to adopt those Haitian children and I am grateful. However, do not forget that many of those children may have extended families overseas who would want them and are not even aware that they are alive, like the 36-year-old woman who is looking for her juvenile brother and sister. Do not scatter our children like they are live stocks. We may be a poor nation, but we are proud people with great sense of family awareness and values. In amidst of our sorrow, it would even be more painful to watch the future (the children) of our people get dispersed all over the globe without our consent. I see that the media reports all those foreign families rushing to get to those children and some reunited. I do not, however, see any coverage on thousands of Haitian families who would be elated to take them, I am one of them. Those children need families who can relate to what they have been through. We need to mourn together. Haiti is flat on the ground. For many of us, those children may be our way of hanging on to what is left of Haiti. They will be our strength to rebuild. I think we (Haitian families) should be given the first chance before the non-Haitian families. We need those children and those children need us. There are rich people out there who are well connected and are successfully rushing to take those kids. If I were rich too, I would adopt all of them. Give us a chance first.
Julia
January 21st, 2010
6:47 pm
Guerline I can see what you are saying but if these children are in orphanages with no one claiming them.. shouldn’t a family that would love them to pieces adopt them?
Corinne O'Brien
January 21st, 2010
7:23 pm
Absolutely, I would adopt as long as it was a female. I have 4 adopted sons ages 5 to 14 and I love them dearly but still long for a daughter.
Dear God, if it is your will, please send one to us.
Angela Townsend
January 21st, 2010
7:26 pm
I would like to adopt one
JATL
January 21st, 2010
7:32 pm
@Peachie -you must not have read my actual posts very well. I was citing two personal examples of people’s extended families who would have issues and act ugly if they adopted a black child. It’s an ugly truth, but it is, unfortunately, the truth in many white families, and I’m sure other ethnicities regarding different races and ethnicities of their own. Prejudice isn’t pretty, but it exists. As for why blacks aren’t adopting Haitian orphans -I don’t know that they’re not. I do know that statistically African-American people adopt less than whites, but as far as this situation -I don’t think we’ve gone far enough into it to know who will adopt or what will happen.
laurie ballard
January 21st, 2010
7:33 pm
I would love to adopt an orphan from Hatia, I am an empty nester with 4 bedrooms in a beautiful neighborhood. I have alot of love to give. Laurie
Theresa Walsh Giarrusso
January 21st, 2010
7:58 pm
Look at the photo of this baby in the orphanage — holy cow — it breaks my heart . I would be holding that baby. I would two or three at once. I hug them and love them and rub their back and rock them and sing to them. Breaks my heart!!! Never want babies or any children to feel alone. So sad.
http://www.csmonitor.com/World/Haiti-Earthquake-Diary/2010/0121/Haiti-earthquake-diary-Orphans-and-a-sense-of-community
JATL
January 21st, 2010
8:05 pm
I think Theresa hits on a good point in the last post -whatever happens with tracking possible family members of these kids, adopting them out, having them fostered or sponsored -they REALLY need some people right now who can hold them and be sweet to them. People who are concentrated solely on the kid’s well-being and not enmeshed in the nightmare that is Haiti. I sincerely hope while they’re sorting all of these children out, so to speak, that these relief organizations set up tent camps and take volunteers who are willing to go there and hold and feed babies and children. Thinking of children and babies alone, crying and hopeless is like an ice pick into the heart.
lulu
January 21st, 2010
8:14 pm
I think one idea would to be to start a list of names of folks (like me) who would be interested in adopting when the time comes. Since the process moves so slowly they could at least let us start the process so that once they determine who the orphans are i.e. after they try to find any remaining family members, folks would be ready to adopt.
I’ve always wanted to adopt. As a person of color I knew I would adopt a child of color but I always wanted to adopt a child born in the US b’c I felt that that was where the need really was. After seeing the heartbreak in Haiti I am open to adopting ANY child who needs a home. It is been a very powerful life-changing experience for me. It has opened my heart so much.
Julia
January 21st, 2010
8:21 pm
I know soooo many white people here that have adopted black babies its normal here and we treat them as the color of their skin does not matter. I think the awesome thing is that people can over come a color and love a child even if he is purple. I am sorry but I am as white as the virgin snow but I tell you if I were in the position to adopt a child from there or even here that is black, I am going to LOVE that child because that is what a mother does…
Julia
January 21st, 2010
8:22 pm
@Peachie go watch the Blind Side
lulu
January 21st, 2010
8:32 pm
Julia, good point. Also, people forget that bi-racial people (like me) are raised by parents of a different race. I was raised by my white mother. My dad was black but they split up before I was born. People who claim that it will be an issue for these kids to be raised by their white adoptive parents are rather ignorant. A parents love knows no color.
Theresa Walsh Giarrusso
January 21st, 2010
8:41 pm
I think we need a list of moms willing to go and hold the babies!!! I’m trying to figure out if Michael could take off from work for me to go to Haiti to hold babies!!!
Julia
January 21st, 2010
8:46 pm
Lulu, my dad was full blooded cherokee, my mom was italian and irish.. I am mixed… in the summer I get black as all get out.. My best friend is very light skinned, her husband is as white as a piece of paper and their boy way too stinkin cute.
At church sat afternoon, there was a young mama that had adopted 3 kids from Haiti.. He was so cute and such a little lover… Biggest flirt and the cutest cheeks.. I wanted to just eat him up :)
Theresa, lets go.. I would love to just hold those babies
Diana Fischer
January 21st, 2010
8:50 pm
I would be willing to adopt a child from Haiti. My own children are grown up and I have many good years to offer an orphan. My husband is Half Jamaican, and an MD and has never had children before. We both Speak French and have travelled the world. We have a large house, and the income necessary to bring a child into our home. I have young grandchildren for the child to play with and can offer a loving home and a good education to any child.
We are older, 53 and 57, but that does not mean we have one foot in the grave. We are the same as were years ago. The option for many of these children will to be in an orphanage until they are 18, or go to a home with older parents and receive love and care and be made to feel special and have all the opportunities any child could ever need. For a small child who does not know distant relatives, who will not be able to offer them much, it is better in my mind that they have a family all of their own where the parents are focused on them, and their happiness, not just giving them enough food to live.
Julia
January 21st, 2010
8:56 pm
(((Diana)))
FCM
January 21st, 2010
9:02 pm
@ Tiger “some had a real disdain for the evolution of the Christian religion.” ever hear of Barton Stone or Alexander Campbell? They came about much later than our founding fathers, and had a disdain for the evolution of Christianity too. They felt called to lead the flock back to the teachings of Jesus (though we accept the teaching of Paul too) and said ANYONE can read and figure out what the scriptures mean for themselves. That it is the baptism (public acceptance of Jesus) and communion (the renewing of the covenant) that is important. I ask because they began a church that became Christian Church (Disciple of Christ). Alexander Campbell’s home is still around as is one of the early churches in Bethany, WV. I mention this because you will see when faith comes up I often butt heads against fundamentalists (especially Southern Baptists or followers of Andy Stanley). I was raised Disciple of Christ. I was educated in Episcopalian schools, married a Catholic (and dated others prior). I have attended Epsicopalian, Catholic, Lutheran, and Baptist services with regularity at some point in my life (meaning a year or more). Before my children were born I came up with my “core beliefs” on God. When my children were born I took a hard look at which “religion” I felt most aligned with those core beliefs so that I could associate on a regular basis with folks who would teach my kids. I realized it was the Christian Church (Disciple of Christ) so I went back “home” to the church I grew up in. There is nothing “wrong” with ANY of the sections of Christianity that I have personal dealings with…its just that their evolutions (to my mind) fell astray.
I went through that lengthy explanation to point out…that I sort “get” where the founders were coming from BUT if you read their personal works, you find the core beliefs of God, Jesus, Man are still there. Thus I stand by what I stated.
Now this falls into more than you probably wanted to hear on my thoughts of the Jefferson or Christian subject:
As to Thomas Jefferson (amazing person from everything I have read!) like many great thinkers/intellectuals (and he read most of them) he questioned his beliefs. To me that seems right/normal progression…he grew up believing in “x” the way he was taught. Then at some point, he said “HEY!” and began to think, question, test, theorize, read, etc (Jesus did this in temple at the age of 12) and came up with his “core” too. I don’t see that he was wishy washy I see it as a period of spiritual refinement (like silver in fire). CS Lewis and JRR Tolkein famously questioned theirs and then wrote on what they decided — Lion, Witch, and Wardrobe and Lord of the Rings of course!
I appreciate your giving me the benefit of the doubt. I can respect your opinions. Just be open to me discussing (like above) why I believe what I do from time to time…I will do the same for you…all without judgement and without any agenda to “convert” you. Actually I like the way you present things to discuss (like Jefferson).
Certainly I will agree with you that there are those (and they may be on this blog even) who are Christians (by their admission) who do not feel the same as I. They think they are supposed to “save” people. Their actions and words are often more exclusionary, censorious, and judgmental. I too feel like they believe that their “version” of Christianity is the only way to have a “good home.” I just don’t think they are right.
BTW One of my mentors says that atheists still have a relationship with God. It is just not the one that he (my mentor) would want. ;)
FCM
January 21st, 2010
9:14 pm
“but the acceptance of Jesus as the Son of God and Saviour is pretty much THE requirement to be a Christian.” I will concede that point…but I do wish I could sit with you and talk about my personal take of my study of the Bible and what God really is after etc. I am not willing to derail the whole blog for that though. :)
I will point out that the inner most workings of Jefferson’s heart (including his acceptance in part, or whole, and how much of that “counts” with God)are not something we can know for sure. No matter what Jefferson wrote, the real crux of his relationship with God–like that of each us of — can only be known between the individual and God.
FCM
January 21st, 2010
9:41 pm
“but I do wish I could sit with you and talk about my personal take of my study of the Bible and what God really is after etc” as an open discussion so I could hear what you think of it …again not so I can try and change your mind. I love open discussion and debate…guess that is why I love the blogs.
N Payne
January 21st, 2010
9:45 pm
If I had the resources right now I would adopt a few Haitian orphans with out thinking twice. I’m currently unemployed but as soon as I’m stable again I will keep my promise. I will be continuing to send what I can because EVERYONE in Haiti needs HELP NOW!!!
Christina
January 21st, 2010
10:27 pm
I’m with Theresa. That baby just needs to be held and reassured that there is something better out there . . . we don’t need to take the babies away. Just hold them.
Guerline
January 21st, 2010
10:38 pm
You see. That is one of the reasons I said to let Haitians take care of their own first. People can help. But let those children go to people who can bond culturally with them. We just lost 200,000 people and counting. We do not have time for prejudices and labeling. People are talking about “black babies.” Why do they have be referred to be “black babies?” Why can’t they be just “babies?” I hope to God that they will not be treated as “black babies.” I know prejudice and racism are ugly. That is why educated and intelligent people should not put too much emphasis on them. We do not want to empower these words. Thanks to the person who commented on that. I was not even thinking about that. Now I have a reason to be tracking, watching and observing closely the white families since the person mention that there might be racial issue adopting “black babies”. I am offended. Get a grip, will you? This is the 21st century. Stop empowering racism.
Irene
January 21st, 2010
10:43 pm
If I could afford to adopt a few Haitian orphans I would. There is always enough love to go around and this is a tragedy like no one has ever seen before in our lifetime. I am a Grandmother and wish I was on a plane and on my way to help those little Angels.
Guerline
January 21st, 2010
10:45 pm
…and Julia, you are NOT as white as a virgin snow. No human being is. You skin is pinkish. The term “white” is just a racial label, just as the term “black” is a racial label. The last time I checked, my skin reflected a chocolate complexion, not black. No one is.
BlondeHoney
January 21st, 2010
11:13 pm
Hmmm…let me say right up front that I have considered adopting even before the catastrophe in Haiti, and even more so now. I’m divorced, my 2 boys are happy successful productive members of society, and even thought it would be a challenge with my career I am pursuing adoption. Not to stir the pot, but I really wonder if all of you who say ‘I can’t adopt because…” are also right-to-lifers. Walk the talk people. Ok I am ready for your Christian slamming. Tiger, I m with you 100%. Guerline, I am also with you 100%; I grew up in Miami close to Little Haiti and have many Haitian Americans that I am proud to call friends.