Did you know that at the finalization of an adoption the child's original birth certificate is sealed, and a new one is issued with the adoptive parents names on it.
I will admit that this is not a topic I have given much thought about because I thought of it more as a domestic adoptee issue but in reading some adoptee and first mother blogs I realize how fundamental of an issue this is. And then it occurred to me it really effects my kids too. For K her Ethiopian issued birth certificate lists us as her parents, although I believe it says adoptive (vs. natural) parents- but without pulling out of the safety deposit box I am not 100% sure. For D though, we do have her original birth certificate- but due to the nature of Chinese adoption there isn't really much information on it. But when we re-adopted them a couple of years ago we had new birth certificates from the state issued. We did primarily to have birth certificates that were in English and more user friendly (D's Chinese BC is 4 pages long in a A4 size folder).
The girls' new birth certificates are identical to the boys with the exception of the information about hospital, attending doctor and time of birth.
Identical.
Think about that. We are listed as giving birth to them. In one act, the state has legally erased their first families.
Sign, sealed and filed away.
Yes I am their parent but I am not the parent who gave birth to them as the certificate says.
The new document is a legal fiction.
And not only is the document a legal fiction but in the vast majority of states the original birth certificate is sealed FOREVER. Even after adulthood an adoptee in most states is unable to view their original birth certificate.
Luckily for my kids, because the state did not issue the original birth certificate, it is not sealed and we have multiple copies of them. Most adoptees are not so lucky.
One thing that I saw clearly these past two weeks is the irrefutable was the way the deck is stacked in favor of the adoptive parents at the expense of the parents who brought the child into the world. I know that there are adoptive parents who loudly proclaim they are the real parents and they want the paperwork to show that.
But at what cost to the child and first family?
Adoptees have two sets of parents and if you, as an adoptive parent, can't deal with that. maybe adoption isn't for you.
I am at a loss to understand why states don't develop a birth certificate that respectfully identifies their original family, acknowledges their current family and does so in way to keep their adoption story private should they want it to remain private.
However, what I am at a far greater loss to understand why the original birth certificates can not be issued to adult adoptees without question. That document contains fundamental information about who they ARE, not just who they were.
Why in 2012 is this even an issue?
Think about this- if President Obama had been adopted- it would have been impossible for him to get his birth certificate to prove he was born in the US.
IMPOSSIBLE.
For the President of the United States.
Makes you wonder what they are hiding
For more information about how to support the overturning of these archaic laws and to find out about National Adoptee Rights Day please click here
8 comments:
"Adoptees have two sets of parents and if you, as an adoptive parent, can't deal with that. maybe adoption isn't for you."
See, it is really not that complicated after all, is it?
I so, so agree! We have talked about this, ad nauseum. I have three adopted from social services. Luckily, we asked for copies of the originals before finalization!
I will definitely click over!
Thanks.
Just wanted to say that your voice is so important and have been following along for several years lurking - just wish some could actually "hear" your voice by learning how to "listen".
Have I ever told you that you are awesome?!
My a-mom had the same concerns about not being the "real mom" if she couldn't be on a birth certificate. This breaks my heart as a woman because we are so narrowly defined by society. If giving birth did not make you a mother, and you definitely still are one, it should not validate you any more or less to be on my birth cert.
I agree with you and wish they would do for us what they do in New Zealand for donor conceived folk--one birth cert with biological and lega parentage where a redacted copy can be requested by the individual for privacy reasons. Problem solved! Why in 2012 are we still arguing this? Excellent question!
Please come to our demonstration in August! :-)
You have stated this so well! I totally agree. I hadn't given much thought to this until recently because we have the information for our first three adopted kids because we were their foster parents before we adopted them, which gave us a lot more information than adoptive parents would normally have and we plan on passing all of that on to our kids. Then, when we adopted from Ethiopia, we were also given their Ethiopian birth certificates, which we have kept in a safe place for them. But this week with the blog hop, I have been reading a lot of blogs I didn't know existed from adult adoptees who do not have access to their information and I just see it as such a basic human right...to know where we came from. I hope the voices are heard and things change.
Great article!!!
I've planned a pretty similar post to this when we get Boohoo's birth certificate.
I do not even understand how this is still status quo. It is just asinine.
It feels slightly strange to be against something listing me as her mother, but for the love of Pete, she was NOT born to me. And frankly, my three year old son understands this and can tell you (or the government) that Boohoo did not grow in MY body, but in the body of her mother in Ethiopia.Maybe I should have him talk to someone...lol.
Thank you for writing this post. The issue of sealed original birth certificates is one that ALL adoptive parents should be aware of, and a cause (OBC access) they should be supporting.
Many adult adoptees cannot obtain US passports due to new post 9-11 Homeland Security rules. Many adult adoptees cannot obtain other legal identification, all due to the filing dates on their amended birth certificates.
Plain and simple, adult adoptees in "sealed states" are victims of state sanctioned discrimination. Legislators and the NCFA spout the mythical "birth mother confidentiality" rules, but there were and are no "birth parent confidentiality" rules or laws.
For more information, see: http://www.adopteerightscoalition.com/p/about-adoptee-rights-coalition.html
You know I love this post. ;-)
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