Tap, Tap, Tap, is this Thing On? Adoptees go Unheard when CNN Featured Adoptee Rights

It's not that I am not glad that Adoptee Rights wasn't given some real visibility on CCN TV with Don Lemon. It's that I wish, for once, an Adult Adoptee would be asked to speak on Adoptee Rights issues.

On SmartTalk Radio, PA Senator Greenleaf was interviewed with Mary Robinson, former CEO of the NCFA an Adam Pertman, Executive Director of the EBD Adoption Institute. Represented between the two of them was Adoptive Parents (both are Adoptive Parents) and the adoption industry.  First Parents and Adult Adoptees were spoken for but none were present.

On WHYY (Philadelphia), Adam Pertman and Professor Anita Allen (from U. of Penn, who is also an Adoptive Parent) were interviewed on Adoptee Rights as well as the pending bill in New Jersey.  First Parents and Adult Adoptees were spoken for, but none were asked to be present.  NJ's bill was spoken of but Pennsylvania's pending bill, in WHYY's own backyard was not.

Today, on CCN, Adam Pertman, Chuck Johnson of the NCFA, and Jennifer Yurfest who is a First Mother were interviewed with  Don Lemon.  However, yet again, this was Adoptee Rights being discussed and an Adult Adoptee was not present.

The question was posed: "What's wrong with requiring a birth mother to sign off on letting her child contact her?"

There's the problem.  We're not "children," and this isn't about "contacting" anyone.  Adoptee rights is about the right to self-ownership, equality, and identity.  "What's wrong" with "signing off" is that no one elses' mother has to and we're tired of being treated like children.  All of this could have been explained in less than 10 seconds if an Adoptee had been there.

Adoptee Rights legislation seeks to restore an Adult Adoptee's right to their own Original Birth Certificate.  "Adult" means over the age of 18.  Is it the stereotype that we're all children and drop off the face of the planet once we are no longer cute, cuddly and endearing that keeps people from seeking us out on issues that impact us and instead ask people with the "parent" label to speak for us instead?  I am 25 years old.  I am a parent and a mother.  I can speak for myself.  Would you ask a panel of men to speak for women's issues?  Would you ask a panel of White people to speak on issues impacting ethnic and racial minorities?

Well, we know that this happens all the time as well.  My jaw hits the carpet every day when panels featuring people-talking-for-other-people are featured on the news.  I guess we should be glad our issue was featured at all?

But we need to change this.  There are no shortage of minorities on any issue that are available to speak for themselves if someone simply looks and asks.  If someone is having trouble finding a well-spoken, educated, well-informed Adult Adoptee to speak on Adoptee Rights issues, contact me.  There are no shortage of us out there.  Come to think of it, I know about a dozen individuals who are Adult Adoptees who have also surrendered children to adoption who can speak if you're really crammed for space and can only have on person show up to speak.

As for the actual CCN show, it was your usual.  Pertman was presenting the facts and the NCFA was spreading more unfounded falsities and stereotypes.  NCFA, which claims to want to spread a "culture of adoption" must mean a "culture" where Adult Adoptees do not exist (we're the only triad member not mentioned in their mission statement).  So, if we don't exist and we're not covered in their mission statement, why are they sought out to speak on the issues of Adult Adoptees at all?

A transcript of the CNN show can be found here (starting at 26:42)

Photo credit: Rasmus Thomsen