Why passions run hot in the Veronica Brown story

Veronica, happy with daddy Dusten Brown

Why does the Veronica Brown case affect us so much? Why does the story of a father trying to keep his daughter--and not let her go to people who want to adopt her--rivet our attention so deeply? Even adoptive parents have turned their attention more than casually to this story.

For first mothers, the answer is: Because we are reminded of how it felt to relinquish our own children. 

For adoptees: Because at some level we understand what is lost when we were removed from our own families and given to another.

For adoptive parents, the answer must be as personal: those who feel that the girl belongs with