Some gains, some frustrations...that's the year in adoption news.
Adoption was in the news this year starting in January with Oprah's revelation that she had a sister who had been adopted. This being about Oprah, her sister's lengthy search was documented everywhere, providing a spotlight on the fact that individuals who are adopted are still denied free access to their original birth records in the vast majority of states, though many have half-way measures in place.
The best news of the year was the Rhode Island--the smallest state in the Union--passed a bill that will allow anyone 25 and over full access to their original birth records come July 2012. The age of 25 was a compromise after Senate Majority Whip Maryellen
Goodwin, a Democrat from
Providence, wanted to raise the age to 30 so adoptees wouldn't ask for their
birth certificates out of spite. Goodwin's sister has two adopted
children. “I think 18 is too young,” said Goodwin. “It’s a tender age. I want them to be able to find
their records in an appropriate and meaningful kind of way,
Nota Bene: We are on vacation until Monday, April 5, anniversary of my daughter's birthday. However, I will be checking in often and posting comments.
This just in from the American Adoption Congress and Pennsylvania Adoptee Rights (PAR): Kim and Lorraine HB 1978 pending in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives is an unrestricted bill that would allow adopted adults born in Pennsylvania to obtain a copy of their original birth certificate. If you have an adoption connection to Pennsylvania or are a resident of Pennsylvania – and you support this legislation – please send your name, address and email to choard@comcast.net so that you can be added to our database. As the bill progresses, we [the AAC] will keep you updated.
For more information about this exciting development, see the Pennsylvania Adoptee Rights website: http://adopteerightspa.org/legislation.html The bill does not release any adoption records. From PAR's website:
What You Can Do:
Please consider joining us to advocate for this issue. Go to the PA General Assembly Website and enter in your ZIP code to find out how to locate your Representative and contact them. View our House Of Representatives Spread Sheetfor Legislator contact and general information.Need help writing a letter to a legislator or want more resources to help you do so? You can also Join PAR (Pennsylvania Adoptee Rights) Google group.
As we learn more about the bill, we will keep you informed. Now is the time for all good men and women to come to the aid of adopted people in their country. Now is the time to get involved, whether you are adopted, relinquished a child, have adopted a child, or are simply a citizen with a good heart who lives in Pennsylvania and believes in justice. Without hearing from citizens, this bill will likely languish. Strength lies in numbers. Let it be your letter that tips the balance in favor of justice.
Meanwhile, overin neighboring Illinois an adoption bill so stinky that it reeks all across the country is being pushed by, of all things: adoptee Rep. Sara Feigenholtz. (Use link to let her know what you think.) Not only does it have a contact veto (but that must be applied for in a matter of months), it contains the noxious proposal to fine any triad member (that would be adoptees, and first mothers/first fathers and adoptive parents and all assorted relatives) who circumvent sealed records and locate adoptees' true blood relatives. The fine: as much as $10,000. If this had been in place in Wisconsin or New York, I would have been fined twice so far, perhaps sent to the pokey for flouting the laws--for finding a) my daughter, and b) one of her daughters. (The one pictured above I knew from birth.)
