In the April 21 editorial “Matters of birth and rights,” the Tribune fails to recognize the compelling needs of adult adoptees. All adults deserve to know whence they came. My legislation gives adopted adults who have reached age 22 the same rights as other Americans to infor-mation about their biological origins and cultural heritage. It is not meant to invoke fear in the hearts and minds of adoptive parents who shudder at the thought of losing their adopted child akin to recent adoptions-gone-bad in Illinois.
The adoption movement is evolving toward more openness. As with other aspects of life, the more we know, the healthier we are. Adoption should be celebrated for its generosity, and adoptive parents should and are being applauded for providing opportunities and love that birth parents could not provide. The pretense that adoption erases a genetic and emotional bond between an adult adoptee and birth parent defies human nature and denies the real needs of the members of this delicate triad.
Adoptive parents should expect that one day their adult children may desire information about their birth families. In the next century genetic information will be the most powerful tool to prevent or cure diseases, from cancer to Alzheimer’s disease. Adoptive families must recognize the compelling need their adult children have for this information.
Birth parents may want information about the current health and well-being of children they placed for adoption once those children are adults. They may even want to meet, and the Internet has created an effective means to assist in their search. This phenomenon negates the arcane protections of privacy that proponents of closed records wish to maintain.
We have come a long way and learned from decades of perpetuated secrets and lies that shielded couples from the stigma of illegitimate pregnancy or infertility. Other states that have opened adoption records celebrate a higher number of adoptions and lower abortion rates than their neighboring states.
Illinois should join with other governments to create a more responsible environment for access to information. The time has come for a law that strikes a balance between providing this access and respecting the promise of confidentiality.
