Comments on: “Negro” Controversy http://www.mauracullen.com/negro-controversy/ Taking Adversity Out of Diversity Fri, 07 Oct 2011 17:11:13 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.2.1 By: Mara http://www.mauracullen.com/negro-controversy/comment-page-1/#comment-624 Mara Sat, 17 Apr 2010 18:39:23 +0000 http://www.mauracullen.com/negro-controversy/#comment-624 Recently, I found the 2010 Census form hanging on my door. As I began filling it out, I came across a dilemma. The U.S. government wants to know if my children are adopted or not and it wants to know what our races are. Being adopted myself, I had to put “Other” and “Don’t Know Adopted” for my race and “Other” and “Don’t Know” for my kids’ races. Can you imagine not knowing your ethnicity, your race? Now imagine walking into a vital records office and asking the clerk for your original birth certificate only to be told “No, you can’t have it, it’s sealed.” How about being presented with a “family history form” to fill out at every single doctor’s office visit and having to put “N/A Adopted” where life saving information should be? Imagine being asked what your nationality is and having to respond with “I don’t know”. It is time that the archaic practice of sealing and altering birth certificates of adopted persons stops. Adoption is a 5 billion dollar, unregulated industry that profits from the sale and redistribution of children. It turns children into chattel who are re-labeled and sold as “blank slates”. Genealogy, a modern-day fascination, cannot be enjoyed by adopted persons with sealed identities. Family trees are exclusive to the non-adopted persons in our society. If adoption is truly to return to what is best for a child, then the rights of children to their biological identities should NEVER be violated. Every single judge that finalizes an adoption and orders a child’s birth certificate to be sealed should be ashamed of him/herself. I challenge all readers: Ask the adopted persons that you know if their original birth certificates are sealed. Recently, I found the 2010 Census form hanging on my door. As I began filling it out, I came across a dilemma. The U.S. government wants to know if my children are adopted or not and it wants to know what our races are. Being adopted myself, I had to put “Other” and “Don’t Know Adopted” for my race and “Other” and “Don’t Know” for my kids’ races.

Can you imagine not knowing your ethnicity, your race? Now imagine walking into a vital records office and asking the clerk for your original birth certificate only to be told “No, you can’t have it, it’s sealed.”

How about being presented with a “family history form” to fill out at every single doctor’s office visit and having to put “N/A Adopted” where life saving information should be?

Imagine being asked what your nationality is and having to respond with “I don’t know”.

It is time that the archaic practice of sealing and altering birth certificates of adopted persons stops.

Adoption is a 5 billion dollar, unregulated industry that profits from the sale and redistribution of children. It turns children into chattel who are re-labeled and sold as “blank slates”.

Genealogy, a modern-day fascination, cannot be enjoyed by adopted persons with sealed identities. Family trees are exclusive to the non-adopted persons in our society.

If adoption is truly to return to what is best for a child, then the rights of children to their biological identities should NEVER be violated. Every single judge that finalizes an adoption and orders a child’s birth certificate to be sealed should be ashamed of him/herself.

I challenge all readers: Ask the adopted persons that you know if their original birth certificates are sealed.

]]> By: Christopher http://www.mauracullen.com/negro-controversy/comment-page-1/#comment-451 Christopher Tue, 12 Jan 2010 22:33:25 +0000 http://www.mauracullen.com/negro-controversy/#comment-451 However, the official stance of the Census Bureau is that term was included after it was requested by people who said they would prefer to use it to identify themselves. In many generational groups and reigions of the country, the terms "negro" and "colored" are still used proudly by people of African descent. However, the official stance of the Census Bureau is that term was included after it was requested by people who said they would prefer to use it to identify themselves. In many generational groups and reigions of the country, the terms “negro” and “colored” are still used proudly by people of African descent.

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