"I think the hardest, most challenging part about being adopted from Brazil is all the things you don't know. I think a lot of what a person becomes is based on the traits of their parents. I don't know my birthparents, let alone their traits. Also, it can be hard not knowing things like family diseases. I was diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis two years ago, and I don't know where it came from."--Lena Marx

About MCAR

The Minnesota Coalition for Adoption Reform (MCAR) is a non-partisan, non-profit coalition of adopted persons, adoptive parents, birthparents, and adoption professionals who promote systemic reforms to adoption law and practice.

A DAY OF RECOGNITION AND HONORING FOR BIRTH MOTHERS
Saturday, July 26, 2008
Lumen Christi Catholic Church
2055 Bohland Avenue, St Paul MN 55116
9:30 am - 3:00 pm
Call 651-291-4488
view flyer

Pawlenty Vetoes Access Bill - May 17, 2008

Governor Tim Pawlenty added adoptee access legislation to a long list of vetoes on May 17, giving him the record for issuing the most vetoes in any year of Minnesota's history. Despite many birthmothers sending him copies of relinquishment papers that had no mention of anonymity, Gov. Pawlenty based his vote on his belief that confidentiality was guaranteed to birthparents who placed children before 1977 in the state. In 1977, Minnesota issued Affidavits to birth parents to choose future contact or no contact.

Previous access legislative attempts had been opposed by Children's Home Society & Family Services as well as Catholic Charities due to concerns about birth parents who had signed Affidiavits of Non-Disclosure. Advocates drafted legislation based on the finding that about 10 percent of the 11,683 documents on file with the Health Department were for Non-Disclosure, the bill citing that those documents would not be released. This compromise resulted in the agencies remaining neutral. The 2008 effort to achieve adoptee access was historic in passing both the House and Senate and in aligning adoptees, birth and adoptive parents with local adoption agencies. Lutheran Social Services opposed the bill.

MCAR BELIEF STATEMENT

All adopted persons should be able to directly access truthful, identifying information about their birth and origins.
Adoption is not a one-time legal event but encompasses a lifelong human process for all members of the adoption kinship network.
The system of adoption should be focused on the needs of the adopted person who benefits by having genetic information both in childhood and in adulthood.
Adopted persons have a dual family identity that should be recognized and respected.
The act of searching for one’s birth origins is not pathological but rather a natural human need in the lifelong quest for identity.
Knowledge of the past empowers all humans to make healthy decisions for today and tomorrow.
To learn why adoption reform is needed in Minnesota, see our FAQ's.

E-Mail

mnadoptreform@yahoo.com