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Adoption - Past and Present
Adoptions today are different from adoptions of the past. In order to make a good decision, know the facts.
PAST
PRESENT
Birthparents had no rights.
Birthparents have many rights. They can select a couple from written profiles; meet adoptive parents before/after birth; and negotiate the amount of contact after placement (pictures, letters, visits, videos).
Adoptions were usually done without a birthfather's knowledge or consent.
All efforts are made to notify the birth- father who must agree to the adoption.
Traditionally, adoption was closed with little or no information shared between the birthparents and adoptive couple.
Adoptions are open, semi-open or confidential. Information between the birthparents and adoptive parents can be openly shared and exchanged.
Adoption records were automatically sealed.
State registries are more open, offering birthparents and adopted adults access to records and opportunities to find each other when the other party consents.
Typically, birthparents were not allowed to have contact with their baby after birth. Often, they were advised not to see or hold the baby.
The amount of contact is now up to the birthparents. While in the hospital, they are encouraged to see, hold and feed the baby, if they wish.
Minimum counseling was provided for the birthparents.
Free counseling is available to birth- parents and their extended families - before, during and after the birth of their child.
Updates on their child were not available to birthparents once the baby was placed with the adoptive family; birthparents were not encouraged to keep in touch.
Birthparents may receive regular updates throughout the child's life. They are encouraged to maintain contact and provide updates about their lives.
The focus was on finding a baby for the adopting couple.
The focus today is primarily on the birth parents' and baby's needs. Adoptive families are seen as a resource for the baby.
Excerpted from A Sensible Choice, Bethany Productions, 1995.
Excerpted from Pregnant? We Can Help You!, The Barker Foundation.