Blog Post #6

Whoa. The statement issued by the National Association of Black Social Workers is pretty intense, and highly controversial. At first, I assumed it was a result of a highly discriminatory civil rights era atmosphere. I was shocked to find that virtually the same position was reiterated in recent years. While I don’t deny that there are probably valid concerns for some aspects of transracial adoption, I feel that the NABSW got a little ahead of themselves on these statements.

The first thing that caught me off-guard was the assertion that transracial adoption is “expedient for white folk” and “not…an altruistic humane concern for black children,” (1972 statement). While families probably prefer same-race children, it is bold to suggest that a white person cannot care for the well-being of a black child simply because they are of another race. I’d like to think that people are a little bit better than that.

Another thing that shocked me came from the 1994 statement, which asserted,

 “Transracial adoption of an African American child should only be considered after documented evidence of unsuccessful same race placements has been reviewed and supported by appropriate representatives of the African American community.” This seems illogical. Shouldn’t it be rephrased to say that transracial adoption will be considered if there is documented evidence from the African-American community which shows that there are substantial successful placements within the white community? They are suggesting transracial adoption is only possible when all else fails, rather than being open to the possibility of research showing successful transracial adoption.

I can understand the concern over a black child’s loss of culture, and his/her “removal” from the black community, but to me it seems like the black community, after centuries of persecution and discrimination at the hands of whites, is simply too unwilling to accept seeing their children in white families. It makes sense, and I would surely expect the same reception from the white community if the roles were reversed, but I think its important to remember that we always need to keep the child’s best interests at the center of our discussion. According to the NABSW’s 1994 statistics, over 222,400 black children are in foster care. If there are homes for all of them within the black community, then that’s wonderful. However, if there isn’t, or if placement will take even a few years longer, or if placement would occur in a substantially less stable home, then transracial adoption needs to be considered for the child’s sake. What is worse, a black child losing a direct link to black culture, or a childhood of abuse and neglect spent in perpetual foster care? To me, this argument borders on selfishness.

Adam K.