Corcoran 1

Matthew Corcoran

Dr. Lyn Freymiller

CAS 138T

4 April 2017

The Right to Know

Mom, what do my real parents look like? Do I have any brothers or sisters? Why did

this happen? Questions like these flow through the minds of adopted children (and also some

adults) each and every day. While in most cases, adoption betters the lives of the individual(s),

there will never be a lack of curiosity and anxiety in regards to the life that theyve been pushed

out of. The thoughts never end; a blessing of a new family almost always leads to a lifetime of

wonder. Adopted people go their entire lives without obtaining biological information, such as

family medical history, origins, and general family knowledge (size of family, parents names,

etc.). Its because of this lack of knowledge that, while not entirely essential, I believe a new

consideration policy should be set. This policy, while likely controversial, would call for the

release of all adoption records to the adoptee once he/she reaches the age of eighteen.

Sure, its probably easy for someone to write about something they believe in, something

that would change the lives of others. Take it from someone with first-hand experience; when I

was two weeks old, I was adopted, and I was followed by my sister eight months later. Our birth-

mother had us as a teenager, and after consecutive premature births (six weeks and one month),

we were given a new home. Now, this doesnt mean that Im not happy with my situation, as I

love my parents more than anything in the world and theyve given me more than I could ask for

throughout my nineteen years of life. However, that doesnt mean that there isnt a day that goes
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by during which I think about what life would have been like if I hadnt been given a new life.

My sister and I dont find it essential, however we do intend to eventually retrieve our closed

adoption records to discover more about ourselves and biological relatives.

Adoptees are members of an exclusive club; we make up a not-so-large portion of the

population, so not many people can relate to what weve gone through. Each year, over 100,000

children are adopted and placed into better-suited homes (Adoption Fact Sheet). Although this

number is fairly miniscule in comparison to the national population of roughly 319 million

(~0.0003%), it is large enough to make it relevant. Looking even further, a majority of these

adopted individuals dont ever gain access to their closed adoption records.

When considering the lack of information provided to individuals about their biological

selves, it is essential to ask the following question: why shouldnt adoptees have access to these

critical documents? Because they contain such important and valuable information, shouldnt

they all be provided to broaden the individuals lives and understanding of their particular

situations? The short answer: we should. As I stated earlier, adoptees DO think about their

biological circumstances, probably at a much higher rate than most would expect. It remains

unclear why some people still push to keep adoption records from adoptees, especially when

they contain information that could clarify medical conditions, nationality discrepancies, and

other areas of interest. When someone turns eighteen, he/she is now legally considered an adult.

Theyre now old enough and legally responsible enough to handle documents and information

such as adoption records, especially if its something theyre pushing to obtain. They have the

right to know about all aspects of life, even if that involves people who may or may not play as

important of a role anymore.

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While I do find the release of adoption records both reasonable and essential, I still find it

important to respect all parties involved. When putting a child up for adoption, some parents

want to keep their information confidential for whatever the reason may be. Fear, guilt, or plain

disinterest; regardless of the situation, everybody has their reasons that they feel are best for all

parties, which is why they should be respected throughout the entirety of the process (Busharis

and Hasegawa).

In my personal opinion, I think the best way to handle confidentiality would be to release

the adoption records to the adoptee only after the birth parents have had the opportunity to give

consent and speak with the child (or perhaps now adult) about anything in particular that he or

she may come across in the records theyre obtaining. After any potential clarifications, the child

should have the right to do whatever they please with the documents and information within

them. This could be achieved through the use of a mutual consent registry; when they are able to

compromise and use a registry, the records may be safely transferred and exchanged to the

individual(s) seeking information (Access to Adoption Records).

The process of obtaining adoption records can be tricky. For those who are fortunate

enough to gain access in some way, it likely wasnt an easy process. This begs another important

question: why is the process of legally obtaining said documents so restrictive and unreasonable

for people? I understand there are confidentiality precautions and safeguards, but shouldnt

something so important be readily available for individuals upon reaching adulthood? It seems

only fair. In most cases, the process cannot begin until the age of eighteen or twenty-one is

reached (depending on the state). This, however, doesnt always mean anything; in most cases

throughout the country, adult adoptees do NOT have legal access to their biological records,

whether the adoption was closed or not (Adoptee Rights).

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If a person is fortunate enough to have the opportunity to undergo the process, the next

step is typically hiring legal personnel who have experience, and then going to court to petition

and make a claim as to why they feel the release of their records is necessary or essential.

Historically, the claim that has the most success is that the records are critical for medical

information. Consider all of the potential scenarios: youre seriously ill and the cause remains

unknown, youre trying to have a child and want to know about any potential biological/genetic

probabilities, or you solely have the sheer curiosity of whether or not youre likely to obtain a

genetically-present condition. In any case, the petitioner should have the release granted by the

court.

There are also, however, some situations in which records are not released to the adoptee.

The most common reasoning for this situation is because of the biological parents; they may

simply not want the adoptee to have access, for which millions of reasons could be applicable.

Regardless, some adoptees who go through the legal process will be left unsuccessful, which is

something nobody should have to experience. Once the individual has reached the age of

eighteen, they are an adult in the eyes of the law, and there should be no restrictions at all,

whether the process involves the court system or not.

Throughout the time in our lives during which weve obtained understanding of our

special situations, my sister and I have spent countless hours on social media and browsing

online files trying to discover even the slightest hint as to our biological history. We even took a

DNA test in order to discover our true nationalities (results are pending). Most people are

supportive or dont have an opinion, as they feel we should have access if we want to. Its our

lives and our true identities that were investigating, so what should it matter? This is why I dont

understand the immense controversy at all different levels of government and across the nation;
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because it affects such a small portion of the population, shouldnt we be able to do as we please

with the information?

According to the Golden Gate University Law Review editorial by Jason Kuhns, Nearly

every state has enacted legislation to permanently seal these records; thus, even adult adoptees

do not have an absolute right to them. This process has created a clash between adult adoptees

who desire access to these original records identifying their biological parents and the states

policy of secrecy (Kuhns). While there is a history of sealing records and not allowing access

for the sake of the birth parents, why not be on the right side of American history? All adoptees

(once they reach eighteen) should have access to know their biological parents names, if they

have other siblings, their medical history, etc. This is hard for people who werent adopted to

understand; theyve grown up with one set of parents and no curiosity as to who actually brought

them into the world. We, however, go every single day knowing that theres a vast part of our

lives that we dont know about. There are things we want to discover and learn about, as it may

help our general understanding of not only why it happened, but almost more about ourselves

and the assurance that it happened for all of the right reasons.

As Ive stated time and time again, the process of obtaining confidential adoption records

is frustrating, unfortunate, and flat out unnecessary. The biological components of individuals

lives are being kept sealed and inaccessible, which is not only wrong, but downright cruel. Just

think about it and pretend for a moment that you were adopted. Say you dont know a thing

about your biological parents. You dont know their names, what they look like, where theyre

from or where they live. You dont know your brothers or sisters, grandparents, or cousins.

Theres a whole realm of information you arent aware of, and youre frustrated. Wouldnt you
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want to figure out all of these things? Its a long and fortunate process, but you should be able to

know. You have the right to know.

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Works Cited

"Access to Adoption Records." Child Welfare Information Gateway, June 2016,

www.childwelfare.gov/topics/systemwide/laws-policies/statutes/infoaccessap/.

"Adoptee Rights." Adoption & Birth Mothers, www.adoptionbirthmothers.com/adoptee-rights/.

"Adoption Fact Sheet." PBS, 7 Sept. 2010, www.pbs.org/pov/offandrunning/fact-sheet/.

Busharis, Barbara, and Pam Hasegawa. "Adoptees Deserve Access to Their Birth Records."

North American Council on Adoptable Children, 2005,

www.nacac.org/adoptalk/accessbirthrecords.html.

Kuhns, Jason. "The Sealed Adoption Records Controversy: Breaking down the Walls of

Secrecy." Golden Gate University Law Review, Jan. 1994,

digitalcommons.law.ggu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1616&context=ggulrev.