Returning Children like Clothing: Problems with Adoption
What happens if an American adopts a child from another country, only to decide later that the kid wasn’t the right fit? The answer may depend on whether you equate adopting children with exchanging clothing to match your new jeans size. One woman out of Tennessee decided that simply sending her adopted 7-year-old son alone on a plane back to Moscow was the solution to her not being able to handle his “emotional problems”. In response to what many people throughout the world are viewing as an irrational and criminal decision, the United States will now have to smooth things over with Russia.
An Associated Press story highlights growing concern regarding the status of United States adoptions through Russia that are currently in progress. Russian officials have not been very clear on whether an official suspension on adoptions is in effect as a result of the recent incident. The story mentions that a U.S. delegation will be going to Moscow early next week to reach an understanding and agreement of adoption procedures currently pending. So far, there have not been formal orders to suspend adoptions.
According to a Voice of America report, U.S. officials note that over 1,500 Russian children were adopted by American families in 2009. And based on the U.S. Child Citizenship Act of 2000, that’s more than 1,500 automatically new U.S. citizens from adoption.
As the case with the young boy being returned to Russia demonstrates, adoption is not for everyone. However, how a person handles this realization in accordance with ensuring a child’s well-being is of the utmost importance. Perhaps this specific parent did not fully consider how a child would change her life on a personal and even financial level. She also may not have been fully aware of what she wanted and what she could provide in terms of the child’s age, gender, personality, interests, race or medical requirements.
As the U.S. seeks further understanding in Russia’s alleged adoption limitations, Americans who have been waiting months, if not years, to be parents, hopefully will not be penalized for another person’s mistake.
