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Hi all
(I blatantly lifted this title from a very similar thread on the transracial adoption forum, so please excuse the X-posting :) )
DH and I adopted our son from Guatemala in 2005. In 2007 we decided that we wanted to adopt a sibling for T. Two countries, two unethical agencies, and a boatload of money later, we are currently with a domestic agency with waiting birthmoms (mostly AA). DH and I have requested a child of color because we do not want our son to be the only non-white person in our immediate family. A "child of color" will most likely be an AA or AA/CC newborn.
We have read, researched, and spoken to as many people as possible about raising an AA child as CC parents. I would VERY MUCH appreciate your thoughts (as CC parents, AA parents, adoptees, birthparents, ANYBODY) on the most important things we should do, or give, or say (or whatever) to our AA child. We realize that in a perfect world we would not be the optimal choice of parents for an AA child...but we are determined to help our (as yet hypothetical) child as much as we possibly can.
Thank you! :)
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Number one you are doing what I think is very important. You are already raising a child of color, so you seem sensitive to their needs. You are also showing that each child's heritage is as unique as they are. Just awesome. Being open to input, researching. Read about the Good, Bad and Ugly, so you can become aware, that way you are prepared to help your child navigate in a positive manner. Maintain an open, honest dialogue adjusting as the child gets older. If you do not know just say so, but we can look into it together. Be a part of their ethnicity/family/general history, not view being AA as only their background. It will come across as genuine, easy, not over the top, a norm. I think this will help the child be comfy in their own skin. It will help self esteem, self identity, and it will help towards a more healthy interaction with others, and more importantly them-self. Best wishes!
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