Adopting Children of Another Race

[Godscreated]

So, adoption is a topic that comes up in my family a lot because of various personal reasons. I often see mixed-race families, have friends from mixed-race families, and I see people's reactions to those families. I obviously know that most of you think of it as a non-issue. A family is a family to a kid who needs one, right? Well, that doesn't always seem to be the sentiment. I've seen people say that white people with children of another race have these children as "accessories." They seem genuinely offended by the idea that white people would adopt a child of another race. Then, of course, there is the question of the impact on the child. Is it negligible? Well, plenty of kids have a white parent and a black parent. Why not two white parents and their own dark skin? Do you think there's a difference? I can see it making the adoption situation rather obvious, which could suck, but other than that, what's the harm?

The thing is, it doesn't appear to me that you have to go actively seeking a child of another race for you to wind up with one. I think some people certainly look for children of a certain ethnicity for some emotional reason or another, which is fine, but I've found that, especially in the U.S., kids up for adoption are a mixed bag. If you want the kid who fits your family, you're going to wind up with a Skittles rainbow of skin tone to "choose" from. I think you can innocently enough wind up the parent of a kid who looks remarkably different from you. My point being that most parents who consider adoption aren't thinking of race but rather of filling in the blanks in their family. The problem isn't with them but with people who would criticize them. Still, those parents have to deal with those people and the child will eventually have to as well. Is that enough reason to adopt within your own race? Is there enough pain in having white parents when you're a different color that foster kids would rather wait for the right brown parents to come along? I suppose it's something to talk to an adoption expert about, but I'd be interested to see what the riff-raff here have to say about it.

 I did not read through the thread so I am probably repeating someone. There are no real races when it comes to skin color that's a man made thing and it most likely spawned from hate of something different. Our skin is all the same, now with man I know this means little because it has been burned into the mind of man for thousands of years. The real thing about adopting a child should only be for the love of that child and the desire to teach that child an unconditional love. That love may generate out of a need a child has, a need you know you can provide and that in itself is love. As you said in the U.S. many people are a mixed bag, I myself am and proud of it and why not it is who I am and I had no choice in the matter. I wouldn't dare want to change it and this is what an adopted child who happens to have a different skin color needs to be taught, color doesn't matter where love is involved. They also need to know that not all people think the same and that they will encounter that some day regardless of who the parents are. So if you are thinking along the line of adoption put love above all other considerations and have a happy healthy family who will love all others. Forgive my grammar I know how much you hate bad grammar probably misspelled something too, but I felt like saying something that's important to me.

GC

[FFaith]

I think you should adopt whatever child feels right to adopt, if you end up adopting at all. Don't worry about those who might think you're using a child as an accessory. Many black people believe evil is not what's wrong with the world, but rather "whiteness" is what's wrong with the world, so of course there are going to be those who object to you adopting a black child. Even with the announcement of that new black superhero movie, you see all over the internet, black people complaining that they're going to have to share the theatre with white people, and asking white people not to show up for the first week of the movie because "this is for us, not you". I give them somewhat of a pass for their racism because of all that black people have been through and are still going through. Don't worry about what people are going to think too much. Just do what you think is best for the child.

[Martian Mermaid]

I think you should adopt whatever child feels right to adopt, if you end up adopting at all. Don't worry about those who might think you're using a child as an accessory. Many black people believe evil is not what's wrong with the world, but rather "whiteness" is what's wrong with the world, so of course there are going to be those who object to you adopting a black child. Even with the announcement of that new black superhero movie, you see all over the internet, black people complaining that they're going to have to share the theatre with white people, and asking white people not to show up for the first week of the movie because "this is for us, not you". I give them somewhat of a pass for their racism because of all that black people have been through and are still going through. Don't worry about what people are going to think too much. Just do what you think is best for the child.

I never was concerned about them. There will always be people pushing for some extreme. Best not to to awknowledge something when it’s obviously ridiculous, or they will keep pushing.
When I have kids some day(if I do), I'll adopt whichever ones I want. I dont care what others say.
Besides, I dont think I could find a kid that matched my background if I tried. I'm a bit of a mutt. (As in I have so many random things in my background)