Adoption Rights Page
A Little History in Closed Records.
According to "Family Matters: Secrecy and Disclosure in the History of Adoption" by E Wayne Carp. Minnesota was the first state to start using confidentiality clauses with adoption. By 1939 only 5 mores states joined Minnesota in using the confidentiality clauses. By 1941 there were 16 more states using the clauses and by 1960 all of the records were sealed. These clauses had little to do with preventing natural parents, adult adoptees or adoptive parents from viewing their adoption records. Wording of the statutes indicate that the laws original purpose was to keep the public from viewing the records not the persons who had a personal stake in the procedings.
Hasting H Hart, a prominent Progressive reformer and director of The Department of Child-Helping of the Russell Sage Foundation contended that "it was essential that the same facts governing illegitimate and legitimate births be recorded." He recognized that recording the real names and addresses of the unwed mother was a hardship but said it was "necessay both for the welfare of the child and the protection of the community." He believed that the way to protect the unwed mother was not by falsifying the birth records and destroying all traces of the parentage of the child but by imposing the seal of confidence upon the custodians of the records keeping. "Everyone who is familiar with the eager desire which such children have, when they grow up, to know the facts of their parentage, and many cases are on record where these facts have become important for the welfare of the child."
As a solution to the child's needs and the unwed mother's needs, Bowen proposed at a regional conference under the auspices of the Children's Bureau in 1919, was "to place at the child's disposal information regarding his parentage, regardless as to whether it is good or bad."
What are the rights that adoptees are fighting for and why do they believe they have less rights than any other citizen of the United States? This is a question which I have heard many times and am hoping to answer on this page.
The biggest right, for which adoptee's are fighting, is their 14th Amendment Rights. The 14th Amendment states in Section 1, "All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside. No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law, nor deny any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws."
The part of this amendment is the part that states that "No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States". If you check the adoption laws in the United States, except Alaska, Kansas and Oregon (Measure 58 passed), you will find that all adoptee's have had their birth certificates changed. No other group of people have had their names changed, their parentage changed, and their heritage changed like adoptees. I have talked to many people and when the issue was explained to them they were all behind the adoptees.
To me this battle needs to be fought on two levels, the state level and the federal level. The states are the ones who violated the rights of adoptees by not allowing them to have their original birth certificates. The federal level since the rights taken away are rights which are federally guaranteed to everyone. Every other citizen of the United States gets their original birth certificates and there is no fuss. Yet an adoptee is not allowed to have this vital link to his or her past. I do genealogy as a hobby and on my husband's side of the family I have gotten fairly far. On my side, it is like I didn't exist before the age of ten.
I have no idea of my ethnic heritage except what I can beg from the one birth great-aunt that I know. I have no knowledge of my religious heritage or even more important to me my medical heritage. I have been told that this information isn't important yet every day I hear more and more about genetic diseases and hereditary diseases and wonder what I passed onto my children and grandchildren without even knowing.
How can we work to restore the rights of adoptees?
On the federal level, Senator Levin has introduced legislation on a Federal Registry bill. You can get more information at The Adoption Forum. There are many pros and cons to this bill so it is advisable to read up on it and to express your opinions to your federal representatives.
First and foremost, I think that it is very important for you to let your Federal Senators and Congressman know how you stand on adoptee's rights. Both Houses of the Legislative Branch of The United States Government have websites for easy access. To find out who your Senators are go to The United States Senate, and for your congressman the address is The US House of Representatives. I would strongly suggest that you send a copy of the letters that you are sending to your states representatives to Committee of the Judiciary for the 106th Congress. It is my strong belief that the Judiciary Committee is the one which can do something about straightening out our rights. Many of our senators and congressman have email boxes but it is still advisable to send a letter to them through regular mail to insure that the mail will be noticed.
I have had people asking me, "What about Birthparents Rights?". I have found this article and think it is the most eloquent written piece that I have seen. If you are interested in adoptee's and birthparent's rights, I would suggest that you read this essay. While there I would suggest that you take time and roam around this home page. I feel its contents are very important.
On the state level, write to your state legislatures and tell them how you feel about this issue. The State & Local Government on the Net is the best place to find out who your representatives are on the state level. Let them know your opinions on civil rights, adoptees birth certificates, and on any improvements you see can be made on searching. Without imput from adoptees, birthparents, adopted parents and the general public nothing will be changed. Be aware when a bill is mentioned that it covers the points you feel are necessary and that you are not buying into a watered-down version of what you feel is right.
- US Adoption Laws.
- Rominger Legal - State Research Directory.
- The Center For Adoptee Rights.
- New Mexico Adoption Registry Petition. This petition is for everyone to read and if they agree to send to the proper people. Take a look and see how you feel about it.
to My Adoption Index.
This page is written and presented by: Beth Leve
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