panafrica said:There are positives and negatives to cross cultural adoptions. Actually there is just one positive: The foster care system is not a good environment for any child to grow up in. Therefore many can say that any home environment would be preferrable. However, the negatives of cross cultural adoptions are legion.
One thing that must be understood is that white children (particularly babies) are rare in the foster care system. For any prospective couple who is looking into adoption, a baby is the primary choice. Thus while most white couples want white children, they often seek non-white children because they are easier to get as babies.
White people who adopt non-white children usually do little to make aware of their original culture. Indeed they essentially try to turn them into "colored" white people (many times changing the child's name to a Eurocentric one). In the few exceptions where a white adoptive family does try to educate their non-white children about their true heritage, they can't do an adequate job because they aren't from that culture.
Non-white children who are raised in white households often have a false perception of the world. As a result they are often unprepared for cruel realities of society such as racism, because they haven't been adequately trained to prepare for it. I'd even go as far as to say many believe they are white, and have a crisis when they realize that they aren't.
Needless to say, I feel that children should be adopted by someone of their race when ever it is possible. When a couple adopts a child from another race, they need to be officially trained about that child's culture and the issues they might deal with growing up. A white couple adopting a child of "color" and trying to turn them white doesn't truly have respect for them in my opinion.
I wholeheartedly agree with this comment. Excellent post.
Htp.u