About Cheerio

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In general I am a cheery and energetic person. But I am enshrouded in a cloak of iron. That cloak is the weight of greiving my son, whom I've lost to adoption.

Tuesday, August 3, 2010

Message on a Stick

The Signs Were Definately Awesome! Group signs Denied Adoptee A Little boy’s sign--- I did not feel comfortable posting the pic of a boy, even without his name. There was a little boy who was about 5 and he wanted to draw his own Demonstration Poster. It was a white 8 ½ x 11 sheet of paper taped to a stick. He started drawing stars for the American Flag, and people, and the border on both side had tears. Why tears? His Dad found out less than 5 years ago that he is adopted. So this little boy sees first hand that “adoption makes people sad.” Pedigrees Skeletons, Secrets & Lies Adoptive Parents support Moms Birth Cert Hostage/Discrimination Original Identity Basic Human Right Searching Identity So, now that you’ve looked at a good sample of the posters, do you know what this Demonstration was about? What do things like “Original Identity,” “denied,” and “sealed” mean? What do Birth Certificates have to do with all of this “lies,” “secrets,” and “secrecy”? Let’s start with the Poster that Summarizes the Plight of the Adoptee. Born – a child is born. There is a birth certificate listing the (original) mother of this child & sometimes the (original) father is also listed. Adopted - the child is given up for adoption. The mother either voluntarily surrenders her rights to parent the child, or the rights are terminated by the courts. Sealed- The adoption process can take from months to years to complete or to be “finalized.” At the time the adoption is finalized, the Original Birth Certificate (OBC) is sealed by the state and a new Amended Birth Certificate is issued for the adoptee. This Amended Birth Certificates now lists the Adoptive Parents as the Mother and Father of the child. Denied – when the adoptee becomes an adult, they find their requests to obtain their Original/Unamended Birth Certificates is “denied.” It is important to note that there are currently there are only two states that do not seal the original birth certificate and never have sealed them. Kansas is one of those states. Why?

So, what is the goal of this demonstration? It is bring awareness to the discrimination to the 6 million Americans who cannot get their Birth Certificates like all other US citizens. The Goal is to change the laws so that an adoptee, when he/she becomes an adult, can got o their vital statistics department and fill out the exact same forms as a non-adopted person would to request a copy of their Birth Certificate, pay the same price as a non-adoptedperson, and obtain their Birth Certificate without all the delays, red tape, extra fees, hassles, etc. Equal Acces is what is being asked for – not special treatment or special privileges,

simply equal. Louisville adoptee rights demonstration

Equal

Access

7 comments:

  1. I have tried for 15 years to get my HOSPITAL records. Denied every time. I've decided today on my birthday that it's not worth time spending any more energy on this. It is what it is. I know who I am and I am going to go on with my life in the strength I've been given.

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  2. An excellent recap here, Cheerio!
    Thank you so much!

    jimm

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  3. Sherrie- your hospital records are not important in the fight for aoptee rights. Hospital records will not help you get a passport, driver's license or social security card.

    "It is what it is"? Seriously? What a selfish attitude to take- especially since you profit from adoptees and their pain.

    I have been in reunion for 23 years and STILL do not have my original birth certificate. I could never throw my fellow adoptees under the bus. Shame on you.

    I will work for ALL adoptees to get their OBC's until I die.

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  4. You let us know how that works out for you, OK Sherrie?

    In the future though, should your conscience not feel all warm and fuzzy over that "it is what it is" statement, there's a whole group of people who are working for your right to be treated equally to the nonadopted, like the author of this blog.

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  5. Oh I am sure there will be a book about it, lol.

    Maybe 20 things you can do instead of empower adoptees, like number 1: Jump rope, number 2: Chew gum... I can see it now.

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