Celebrity Adoptions

Sometimes I get really upset about it because it feels like a publicity stunt. "Look at me adopting these cute impoverished kids from Africa" that makes a great cover story. And celebrities are no better educated than anyone else on adoption, and oftentimes say things that make birth parents look bad or depersonify the adoptee. I think if you're a celebrity and you're going to adopt, you need to be extra careful how you talk about adoption. I really like how Jamie Lee Curtis talks about adoption. She is a great example of how a celebrity adoption should be handled.

I agree with Annaleece... but they are giving a home to kids who might not have one. They do need to learn how to talk about adoption. I didn't realize Jaime Lee Curtis adopted.

I think it's probably difficult for celebs to adopt -- so much of their life is on display for our entertainment. Anything newsworthy becomes 'breaking news' and before you know it, something private like an adoption, becomes everyone's business, not just their own. Most of the time, it's news outlets that perpetuate the adoption stereotype. More often than not, celebs usually keep a tight lip about their journey. I know with Sandra Bullock adopted, she refused to speak about it -- so others spoke for her and that can be difficult. I think people often forget that celebs are people too. Some handle the adoption topic with grace and dignity. Others, not so much. I know several years ago, there was a celeb couple (I can't remember who it was) that adopted a sibling group from the Foster Care system. There was a lot of media surrounding why/when/where and a lot of conversation about them doing it for publicity. The funny thing is, they just acknowledged it, because the rumor mill had gone nuts -- they never tried to cash in on building their family through adoption from Foster Care. But it was news and the news outlets went a little nutty with it. A lot of times, when celebs adopted internationally, they will speak out about the country, the dire straights that the children are in, the economic situation of their birth country and the lives of those left behind. I don't think they're doing it for glory, I think they're doing it more to raise awareness of the plight faced by the peoples of that nation. Take, for example, Angelina and Brad -- of course they talked openly about their adoptions from various countries, but they also raised awareness, increased adoptions from those countries and filtered badly needed funding to those areas so that parents who wanted to parent, could parent. With Celebrity Adoptions, you have to take the bad with the good. Of course, there are some celebs who are self-centered and use adoption as a means to promote their brand. But I'd also point out, there are also everyday citizens who do the same thing, for the attention it gives them. We just don't hear about them!

Well said. Having a cousin in that business, their lives are on display. and the media will take a story and run with it..