| Adoption is the legal act of permanently | | | | terminate their parental rights and the |
| placing a child with a parent (or | | | | children may then be adopted. |
| parents) other than the birth parents. | | | | A minority of adopted children were |
| Adoption begins with the severing of the | | | | orphans. |
| parental responsibilities and rights of | | | | In some cases, parents' rights have been |
| the biological parents and the placing | | | | terminated when their ethnic or cultural |
| of those responsibilities and rights | | | | group has been deemed unfit by the |
| onto the adoptive parents. After the | | | | controlling government. Historically, |
| finalization of an adoption, there is | | | | Aboriginal Peoples in Australia were |
| generally no legal difference between | | | | affected by such policies, as were |
| biological and adopted children in most | | | | Native Americans in the United States |
| jurisdictions. | | | | and Canada. Moreover, unwed mothers in |
| Different jurisdictions have varying | | | | many countries still are often pressured |
| laws on adoption and post-adoption. Some | | | | or forced by families, religious bodies |
| practice confidential or closed | | | | or governments to relinquish their |
| adoption, strictly limiting the | | | | children for adoption. These practices |
| availability to adopted persons (and | | | | of the past have become |
| their families) of information on | | | | emotionally-charged social and political |
| biological families. Others have varying | | | | issues in recent years. |
| degrees of open adoption, which may | | | | The main reasons for adopting vary, |
| allow for such contact. In some | | | | depending largely on social and legal |
| jurisdictions, open adoptions are not | | | | structures. The inability to |
| legally enforceable agreements. As of | | | | biologically reproduce is a common |
| October, 2006, 22 U.S. states have legal | | | | reason, often due to infertility. |
| provisions for enforceable open adoption | | | | Another obstacle is the lack of a |
| contact agreements | | | | partner of the opposite sex or a lack of |
| Adoptions occur for many reasons. Many | | | | desire to use a surrogate or sperm |
| children are placed for adoption because | | | | donor. Single people and same-sex |
| their biological parents decide that | | | | couples often adopt for this reason. In |
| they are unable to adequately care for | | | | many Western countries, step-parent |
| them. In some countries, where single | | | | adoption is the most common form of |
| motherhood is considered scandalous or | | | | adoption as people choose to cement a |
| unacceptable, some women in this | | | | new family following divorce or death of |
| situation make an adoption plan for | | | | one parent. |
| their infants, whereas others may come | | | | Some fertile couples or individuals |
| under financial, societal or family | | | | adopt children. Some may choose to do |
| pressure to choose adoption. In some | | | | this in order to avoid contributing to |
| cases, they abandon their children at or | | | | perceived overpopulation, or out of the |
| near an orphanage, so that they can be | | | | belief that it is more responsible to |
| adopted. In some cases and in some | | | | care for otherwise parent-less children |
| cultures, a parent or parents prefer one | | | | than to reproduce. Others may do so to |
| gender over another and place any baby | | | | avoid passing on inheritable diseases |
| who is not the preferred gender for | | | | (e.g., Tay-Sachs disease), or out of |
| adoption. | | | | health concerns relating to pregnancy |
| Some biological parents involuntarily | | | | and childbirth. Still others feel that |
| lose their parental rights. This may | | | | given challenges carrying a baby to |
| occur when children are abused, | | | | term, adoption is the best way to grow a |
| neglected or abandoned. Eventually, if | | | | family. Others believe that it is an |
| the parents cannot resolve the problems | | | | equally valid form of family building, |
| that caused or contributed to the harm | | | | neither better than nor worse than the |
| caused to their children (such as | | | | biological route. |
| alcohol or drug abuse), a court may | | | | |