Adult Adoptees

[yoka955]

It is a bit discouraging. I　was thinking about maybe adopting one day when i'm older, but if this is what they're going to go through mentally then well what much is accomplished? I don't think the problem though is with nonAsian parents adopting Asian children, it's with our society that's not tolerant enough to other people of different races. Whether you're Black, White, Asian, Hispanic, if you've grown up here we're all Americans, so what's the big deal?

[leli0601]

the feedback that i receive from this video is that....the adoptees don't seem grateful for the chance that those families gave them. That's a shame...

[onemoreturn]

Fine, I'm all for stopping the inter-racial adoptions. It seems that it would be the best solution for everyone.

[Cjaz84]

Sounds like a bunch of BS. These people are not acting "white" they are acting american. Simple as that. I have never seen these problems in real life. All the kids I know that were adopted into homes not of the same race are doing just fine. This does not worry me at all. I live in a military town with tons of diversity. Should we just have left those kids in an orphanage? They totally would not have the race ident. probs then (sarc)

[beretanian]

The propblem is not if you are asian or not, but how you look.

[MondoBeno]

If you're going to adopt kids from Asia, you should have them raised bilingually. That way, you'll leave it up to them to decide about fitting in.

[quemacha]

I have a solution: Asian couples and Black couples actually adopt kids. Here's another solution: Don't conceive children you can't raise responsibly. That way there will be no need for adoption.

[scott97]

OK, I'm convinced. So what's the answer? No international adoption? Will that mean more children growing up in orphanages?

[theDirtyGupta01]

@NaturalGrace Ithink you're on to something here

[xoxYourMommyxox]

ive never wanted to give birth. ive always immagined 5 kids calling mommy that are from everywhere... i live in NYC and im multi-racial and ivedeltwth identity issues cus of it... but i hope my future adopted kids dont.

[nomorefunds]

@xoxYourMommyxox So what if you never wanted to give birth. Do you think that makes you more "evolved" than women who do want to have biological children? Do you want the feminist gold star or something? Blech!

[xoxYourMommyxox]

@nomorefunds lol.

[xoxYourMommyxox]

@nomorefunds lol what are you talking about?

[upcycle]

where can i see the rest online?

[angrykorean]

I can't believe how disconnected I feel from anyone else really like me. It's like being part of a people that has no homeland is scattered everywhere.

[JoeThaDreamer]

well, what happens to kids who are obviously bi-racial or multi-racial, and who dont fully fit in with any one of their racial identities

[x2ruthless]

My heart goes out to adoptees. On top of the racism they get, they suffer from HUGE identity issues. Its really sad to see. They actually think they're white. They go through lengths to solidify the illusion as they become adults. And I truely believe non asian people shouldnt be allowed to adopt asian babies. I have this gut feeling they see them as pets.

[galveston]

@x2ruthless They don't see them as "pets." What an ignorant, racist statement.

[Kirke182]

@x2ruthless I agree with you. I am against interracial adoption. For those who say that's racist, ask yourself if you would want to be adopted into another race, another country, another culture, where you are not really accepted and your adoptive parents have no idea how to help you and there is no one around you who is like you and so you can't talk about it to anyone. Don't give me this "as long as there's love" crap. You will have an ID crisis.

[nomorefunds]

@x2ruthless They should not have been adopted at all. They should have remained in their country of birth.

[LeeMIlby]

@x2ruthless

Well, AS an interracial adoptee, i actually don't have those "identity issues" you speak of. Other people (no offense, but people that have a similar opinion to what you said) will insist that i MUST have an identity issue of some sort because they see biological heritage as being an essential piece of human identity, but the fact is, identity is a matter of choice. It's someone's choice to identify themselves with a race, or with a religion, or with a nation. It's not inherent.

[NaturalGrace]

As a white person, I'm afraid you are the one that's ignorant. Children of colour that are adopted by white parents tend to have lots of self-image problems and emotional issues because of it.

It's not because of the colour of the parent's skin, but because white parents very often don't know how to deal with the racism their children face, minimize their children's experiences, "don't see" race, or may have racist tendencies themselves.  These things hurt children.

[hanie510]

Um, well I'm Asian and I'm adopted by white parents, so I'm sorry, but you have no idea what you're talking about.

My parents are really understanding and help me through everything. You're just making generalizations and judgments

[insanejain]

YOU TELL THEM!!!!

[Kirke182]

@NaturalGrace Thank you. I've argued this with so many white people who pull this "race doesn't matter" crap. It DOES matter!

[SuddenCatharsis]

@NaturalGrace The reason why adopted "children of color" half self-image problems is because they are surrounded by white people on a daily basis, and white people on average are the best looking race. I know it sounds racist, but deep down we all know its the truth. I guarantee you an adopted white child raised in an Asian country would not have the same self-image problems.

[OneTonGarage]

@SuddenCatharsis Believe it or not, you're wrong. The odd duck out is considered ugly anywhere on earth, and white kids raised in Asian countries are teased just as much as Asian kids raised in predominantly white parts of the US. If we want to play with stereotypes we could argue that at least the Asian adoptees in America can academically outdo their school peers, but the white kids overseas can't hold a candle against their Asian schoolmates.

[LeeMIlby]

@NaturalGrace

I agree that many parents are unprepared for the lives they choose for their children, but it's also a societal issue. I can't even count the amount of times that people have told me "i think you should go to Vietnam to find your REAL parents". Or, "yeah i know, but where are your REAL parents?" Even when i was in elementary school, teachers forced me to see the school counselor when they found out i was adopted.

[LeeMIlby]

@NaturalGrace

(cont) It's been frustrating to deal with people trying to convince me that i have psychological problems that i actually don't, but other than that, my life has been awesome and i don't have "identity issues" because i identify with being original- with being myself. I think that originality should be celebrated, and people should accept that just because something seems superficially incongruous, doesn't mean that it is "wrong"

[friarcajun]

Asian babies shouldbe adopted by Asians - not white people, wen possible

[TheLiptonGroup]

And midget children should only be adopted by midget parents ?

And buck-toothed children, should only be adopted by buck-toothed parents ?

And pear-shaped children, should only be adopted by pear-shaped parents ?

[GDGspire]

Are you kidding me? You compared having buck-teeth to being Asian? One is a physical trait; the other is your physicality, along with the history of your culture/ethnicity.

I think adoption is usually a good thing. But you have to acknowledge that with transracial adoption comes issues related to identity. I do think it's better for Asian children to be adopted by Asians when possible, but I don't think it's bad for white people to also. You just have to recognize what it does to the child.

[LeeMIlby]

@GDGspire

"what it does to the child" sounds like you assume that interracial adoption always has a bad influence. At least in my case, it gave me the freedom to be myself, to be original, and pursue my wildest dreams without feeling the need to adhere to societal norms (like those brought on by enforcing a predetermined culture). You are not born with a culture, you learn it. Just like you learn what is expected from certain ethnicities. Lipton is right to compare physical traits.

[madde23]

I definetly agree!

[Tothe2012]

Jen, as a fellow Asian-American, I support you fully 100% and I feel the Asian-American community does not support each other emotionally and spiritually as much as we can. We are afraid of how we are perceived because we get so little recognition of the racism we experience, and I applaud your courage to express yourself in this interview.

[MeyKhuangPien]

Thanks for uploading this. Hoping to buy a copy soon!