Once you decide to adopt, you cannot get very far into the process without making certain choices. Which agency to use, age range, level of special needs, domestic or international, open/semi-open/closed, foster care, etc. Each of these types have very different processes. Some folks are comfortable with the domestic process, others prefer the international process. For us, we found an agency we liked, but did not feel like their infant domestic program was a good fit for us right now. There’s nothing unethical or wrong with it, but we just were not comfortable with it. So we chose the Guatemala program. We may use a different program or adopt special needs some time in the future.

There’s so much more to this that I can’t fit in a blog comment, and I doubt Rudy want’s this to become a major adoption forum so please let me know if you want additional thoughts on this topic.

Thanks for posting the photos and for engaging in an important discussion. Change only happens when people are aware, passionate and empowered.

I’m so glad Scott left the comments that he did because some things about Guatemalan adpotions really need to be clarified for most. There is a perception that babies are bought and sold, and of course corruption still exists.

But the interview and DNA process, along with a reputable agency can abate many of the concerns. The costs mentioned on one other post are way high, the figures in cases that I’m familiar with are closer to Scott’s number, if not a little lower. Other costs add to the total though.

The other perception I want people to consider is what adoption is all about. For most of use who have gone or are going through this, it is not about rescuing a child. It is not about doing whatever it takes to get a baby. It’s not JUST about giving some poor kid a better life.
It IS about forming a family. Bringing a child without a family into a family. I know it sounds like a tiny distinction, but it’s real. If American adpoting were really just concerned about the humanitarian situation, we’d be doing a lot of other things as suggested above. Paying for insfrastructure, health care, education, etc. In reality, we should be doing all of these things, in addition to finding homes for orphans.

I agree though that the most painful part of the ineternation process is the fact that the child experences a sense of loss. Loss of a birthfamily, loss of homeland, language (usually), food, culture, etc. It’s critical for adopting families to understand this. Rudy aludes to the fact that there’s no way a Guatemalan born child living in America with European descent parents will get to experience being Guatemala no matter what we parents do. It’s still very important for adpotive parents to provide oportunites for their kids to explore their heritage though.

The issues regarding the adoption of Guatemalan children are very complex indeed. I am the father of two adopted children from Guatemala, so I feel that I know something about this issue. Adoptions are a big business in Guatemala. Agency fees alone are around $27,000 with the largest portion of the money going directly to the Guatemalan attorney handling the case. Until the Guatemalan government fixes the some of the problems in the Guatemala adoption system, attorneys there will continue to get richer and richer. Contrary to what Juan says, Americans do not have to travel to Guatemala to meet the birth mother. If a meeting takes place at all, it is at the discretion of the birth mother.

There are also several steps in the current adoption process which help encourage authenticity and legitimacy: 1) DNA testing is performed to assure that the child is indeed the birth mothers (fraudulent adoptions in Guatemala used to be a huge problem – perhaps what Juan was referring to), 2)a Guatemalan social worker interviews the birth mother to assure that it is her wishes to give the child and to assure that the adoptive family is well suited for the adoption, 3) Procuraduría General de la Nación (PGN) reviews the entire case for any sign of fraudulency, 4) a thorough review of each case is performed by the U.S. Embassy, and 5) the birth mother has up until the very end to change her mind about the adoption.

The biggest problem I have with Guatemalan adoptions is that the attorneys there are getting rich. We spent most of our life’s savings on the adoptions. I wished that the money would have been directed back to the Guatemalan people (to help build schools, etc…).

Yes, our children are Americans that happened to be born in Guatemala. We intend on visiting Guatemala as often as possible to keep their and our connection to this beautiful country and the beautiful people there as vibrant and alive as possible.

The photograph: A picture is worth a thousand words; so, since I published 5 photos I have the equivalent of 5,000 words that show a happy adopting family, relax, at peace and enjoying each other. These images should be plenty to upset the balance of my opinion.

Guatemalan Adoptions: I did not mean to imply that all the people involve in procuring and resolving the legal hustles of the Guatemalan bureaucracy regarding adoption, international or otherwise, are corrupt or mean-spirited. What I said was that there are many people who only see the adoptions as a business without any regards to the human rights of the birth family and the baby. I suggested to use some of the resources that I found and to inform yourself.

Customs and Cultural Expectations: From my personal experience of Guatemalans, Mexicans, Salvadorians, et-cetera, that had offspring in the United States and their children were exposed to the customs and cultural background of the parents; this however did not made the children Guatemalan or Mexican (depends in the country of origin). Rather a new breed of human beings with their own cultural values and identity was formed. That is the reason why we have chicanos and pochos (or whatever they choose to call themselves). Now, imagine what is like to have parents from a different ethnic background and culture; I surely can not imagine a Salvadorian baby becoming a Salvadorian baby when her parents are Asians and living in Little Rock, AK (even if the parents try to teach her about her native country).

I hope to clarify a little further my entry and not to confuse people even more. My best wishes to all adopting parents and their babies. Like I told Jerry, I rather see families with babies like the ones in the photos above than to see kids at age six working in the streets, as I pointed out on my entries about Child Labor and Tourists and shoe-shining boy.

Please, do read Juan’s and Marco’s comments. They showed us a different angle at this multilayer issue which is adoptions.