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VOICE ONE:
Every year, thousands of Americans take a child into their homethat was born in another country. I’m Steve Ember with PhoebeZimmermann. International adoption is our report today on the VOASpecial English program THIS IS AMERICA.
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VOICE TWO:
Many husbands and wives in this country want a child, but may notbe able to have one. Or, such married couples may want to add anadopted child to their other children. Single Americans may alsowant to become parents.
But since the nineteen-sixties and nineteen-seventies, the numberof babies and young children who can be adopted in this country hasgreatly decreased. Today, many people are going overseas to adopt aforeign child.
VOICE ONE:
East Asia, eastern Europe and Latin America have become adoptioncenters for Americans. For example, thousands of Americans haveadopted children from China, Russia, South Korea, Guatemala orRomania. More than sixteen-thousand children were brought here fromthose and other countries during nineteen-ninety-nine. The nextyear, the State Department says more than eighteen-thousand foreignchildren were adopted and brought here from all foreign countries.
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Thousands of children in America grow up in temporary familyhomes. Or, they live in group homes. Many are older children orchildren who have health problems.
But the public demand for children to adopt is mainly for healthybabies and very young children. Today, there are no longer greatnumbers of such children to meet that demand. About thirty yearsago, American women got the right to choose to end theirpregnancies. This has made changes in adoption in the United States.
VOICE ONE:
American society also has changed beliefs about who will make agood parent. Years ago, few single people or couples older thanabout forty could adopt. Today, it is much more common for singlepeople to adopt. Some couples of the same sex are adopting children.People who are no longer young also can adopt.
Laws about adoptions within the United States differ from stateto state. Prospective adoptive parents — people who want to adopt– are asked to show that they can provide a safe and loving home.Then they wait until an adoption agency finds a child for them.Sometimes people wait years. Other adoptions happen much morequickly.
Costs differ greatly. Some estimates say the average may be aboutten-thousand dollars.
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Adoptions also take place without the services of an agency. In aprivate adoption, a lawyer or doctor connects a pregnant woman withpeople seeking a child. But sometimes this does not guarantee a babyto adopt. For a time after the birth, biological parents arepermitted to change their decision to surrender their child.Sometimes people wait a long time for a baby. Then they learn that abirth parent has decided to raise the child after all.
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VOICE ONE:
Many adoption agencies in the United States also handle overseasadoptions. These adoptions often involve direct relinquishment. Thismeans the biological parents may be dead. Or, they may have alreadysurrendered their child to an orphanage. The new parents then maytake the child directly home to the United States.
Like most adoptions within the United States, overseas adoptionstake time. They may take many months, or more than a year. Adoptionagencies and the Department of State have a number of requirementsfor people wanting to adopt overseas.
A social worker must make a home study of the prospectiveparents. The goal is to make sure the home and family will be goodfor the child. For example, the prospective parent must show abilityto provide financial support. They also are investigated to see ifthey obey the law.
Many overseas adoption centers require prospective parents tomake two trips. On the first, the people meet and spend time with achild. On the second, they complete the legal adoption process.Parents also are advised to repeat the adoption process in theUnited States when they return. Foreign adoptions can be costly. Forexample, some people have paid thirty-thousand dollars to adopt aRussian child. The total amount depends on travel expenses.
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China has become the major source of foreign adoptions byAmericans. China’s population policy calls for only one child perfamily. As a result, many parents surrender children — mostlydaughters — for adoption. Adoptions by foreigners became legal inChina in nineteen-ninety-two. Americans adopt more thanfive-thousand children a year from China.
But there is a problem now because of the spread of SARS. By latelast week more than two-hundred-seventy people had died of severeacute respiratory syndrome in China. More than five-thousand hadbecome infected.
On May fifteenth, the China Center of Adoption Affairs postponedmailing documents to prospective parents to travel to China. It alsosaid those who already have travel plans made should do their bestto delay their trip. The center placed its notice on its Web site.The agency said it hopes to avoid the spread of SARS infection thatmight be caused by the flow of people.
VOICE ONE:
Normally, Americans who want to adopt in China must visit theUnited States Consulate in Guangzhou. That city is in GuangdongProvince, where SARS is believed to have begun in November. Theconsulate is the only American diplomatic office in China thatprocesses travel documents for adopted children.
Many people wanting to adopt have gone to China even with therecent travel warnings to stay away because of SARS. Agencies saidfew prospective parents had cancelled flights to China for nextmonth. Deep desire for a child urged many people forward. There werecomments like, “There is no way I would not do everything I can tobring my child home.”
But that was before the announcement last week by the ChinaCenter of Adoption Affairs.
An extended suspension on travel for foreign adoptions would hurtthe Chinese as well as the prospective parents. China wants homesfor the children. It also receives thousands of dollars in adoptioncosts. And, adoptive parents provide business for hotels and storesin Guangzhou.
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VOICE TWO:
Some children adopted overseas suffer from physical and mentalproblems. Experts say it is extremely important for adoptive parentsto watch their children’s health and development carefully.
The United States has about twelve centers established especiallyto meet this need. One such place is the International AdoptionCenter at the INOVA hospital in Fairfax, Virginia. It offers anumber of services to adoptive parents.
Foreign agencies often present adoptive parents with medicalrecords and videotape of a child. A Center doctor can meet withfamilies before they go overseas to adopt. The doctor can studythese records and discuss possible problems. The doctor also canexamine the child after the adoption is completed.
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Experts say children who have been in large orphanages oftendevelop more slowly than others. Children in groups also have abigger risk of infections. They may have diseases that children’sdoctors in the United States do not usually see or treat. Forexample, the children may have an intestinal disorder calledparasites.
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Clearly, adopting an overseas child demands loving parents whoare willing to take some chances. Kevin and Edie McGee ofMillersville, Maryland, are such a couple. They had been trying forten years to have a baby. Then, a few weeks ago, they went to China.There they met their fourteen-month-old daughter. They adopted andre-named young Min An An. But, back home, Missus McGee developed asickness that may have been SARS.
Now she has recovered completely. On May eleventh, the McGeefamily celebrated an American holiday with their adopted baby,Madeline. It was Edie McGee’s first Mother’s Day as a mother.
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VOICE ONE:
This VOA Special English program was written by Jerilyn Watson.It was produced by Mario Ritter. I’m Steve Ember.
VOICE TWO:
And I’m Phoebe Zimmermann. Join us again next week for anotherprogram about life in the United States on our VOA Special Englishprogram, THIS IS AMERICA.
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