The flawed arguments against transracial adoption

[cartoon id="74147"] What do Sandra Bullock, Madonna, Tom Cruise, Jane Fonda, Steven Spielberg, Michelle Pfeiffer, and Angelina Jolie have in common? All have adopted Black children or children of African descent. Interracial adoption is a topic that seems to periodically resurface in the public arena. Matters usually reach a fever pitch when a movie about a white family saving the life of a Black child. There's 2009’s "The Blind Side," starring Bullock, who won an Academy Award for her performance. Or 1995’s "Losing Isaiah," starring Oscar winners Halle Berry, Jessica Lange, and Cuba Gooding Jr. While both movies tackled racial identification from different perspectives, the issue was at the forefront of each. Arguments surrounding the topic tend to be hypersensitive, defensive, and based on emotions. Critics of cross-cultural adoptions argue such a practice reinforces the belief that socially-conscious, savior-minded white people must rescue disenfranchised Black children. They also claim white people who partake in such efforts are well-intentioned but misguided, or that in some cases are engaging in a trendy form of altruism in an effort to assuage their guilt of benefiting from privilege. In 1972, the National Association of Black Social Workers referred to trans-racial adoption as “cultural genocide.” The group further stated that under no circumstances should any Black child be placed in a white two-parent home. Now, more than half a century later, the organization has softened its stance but still encourages and maintains the belief that children of color are better served in environments where the influences of their racial and cultural heritage are evident. Such factors, the group argues, are seen as vital for cultivating the child’s sense of awareness and positive self-esteem and protecting them from racism. This argument is politically charged and somewhat flawed. First, children adopted by celebrities are going to have lives that are atypical of most ordinary people, regardless of race. Often, the level of wealth and social contact offset any traditional issues ordinary folks have to deal with. Second, who is to say that because a Black kid is with a Black family, the family members will be able to protect the kid from racism any more than a white two-parent family? Can a Black, two-parent family teach a non-white child to face racism more effectively? Perhaps. Perhaps not. Second, a person could grow up in a Black household, live in an all-Black neighborhood, attend a predominantly Black high school, worship at a Black church, and spend their entire lives within the Black community and still suffer from low self-esteem, self-hatred, and other insecurities. The same could hold true for a person of any racial group who is solely immersed in their culture’s mores and customs. In contrast, a Black child could live with two non-Black parents, reside in an integrated environment, and harbor a high level of self-worth, racial awareness, and respect for others. White parents can be racially and culturally aware, and Black parents can be resistant to any sort of Black culture. Similar arguments could be made in regard to biracial children. Former President Barack Obama is a prime example of a person who has moved in both worlds. He was raised by his white grandparents, married a Black woman, and developed friendships with people across racial lines. Agencies should prepare families considering interracial adoption to comprehend the indisputable impact of race on achievement, self-esteem, self-concept, and mental health. Parents who adopt children of color should recognize and challenge systemic and systematic racism’s pervasive force. They should ensure that such children are connected to appropriate role models and are not racially isolated. Children, regardless of their race, should be placed in families that will love them, discipline them, and provide for them. In some cases, race could and perhaps should be considered, but common sense and pragmatism should be the deciding factors in adopting children of any race or ethnicity. In our increasingly multiracial nation, it would only make sense. - Copyright 2025 Elwood Watson, distributed by Cagle Cartoons newspaper syndicate Elwood Watson is a professor of history, Black studies, and gender and sexuality studies at East Tennessee State University. He is also an author and public speaker.