The North
American Center on Adoption was founded in 1975. It was a special
project of the Child Welfare League
of America. Its purpose was to address the problems faced by
“waiting children” in the foster
care system.
We recognize that a growing number of adults who were adopted as
children are engaged actively, today, in a search for their biologic
parents. We are also keenly aware that, years ago when the vast
majority of these men and women were adopted, social agencies legally
contracted not to reveal the identities of birth parents.
Without this assurance of confidentiality, many mothers—and
fathers—might not have arranged for the placement of their
babies via legal channels. Hence, social agencies remain reluctant
to participate in efforts toward identifying either biologic parents
or adoptees. Contracts should not be lightly breached, nor should
the past be revered without question.
Present practice must be reviewed in the light of current awareness
and intelligence. We are sensitive to those adoptees who have deep
feelings about their identity (both psychologic and biologic), who
feel they have a “right to know” their past, but we
recognize as well the complex nature of the issues involved, not
the least of which is an invasion of privacy. We favor agency practice
that makes available all information on the adoptees to the
adoptive parents, short of naming the biologic parents, at the time
of placement. Further, we support the enactment of laws that will
henceforth require written disclosure of such information, copies
to be filed with the courts so that the adoptee, on attaining adulthood,
may have access to this available information, whether or not it
has been offered to him before that time.
|