Robin Harritt
2007-03-10 17:31:08 UTC
I was born in September 1953 and adopted in May 1956. When I was 6 my
adoptive mother became ill with breast cancer, she died about month after my
7th birthday. From the age of six and half years I was brought up almost
entirely by my adoptive father. He never remarried, as far I know he was not
gay, I know that I am not. There was not and never has been any law in
Britain to have prevented him enlisting the help of another man in my
upbringing, I would not have felt disadvantaged in anyway if he had.
From the very first day that the institution of legal adoption begun in
England and Wales on the 1st of January 1927 it has always been possible for
a single of either gender to adopt a child. Under the 1927 Act there were
restriction on a single male adopting a female child. From the time that
male homosexuality was decriminalised in 1967 there has been no law prevent
a single gay man from adopting a child and at the same time living with a
partner of the same sex. Lesbianism has never been illegal in the UK and
since the 1st January 1927 there has been no law to prevent a single woman
applying to adopt a child and living with that child and another woman.
Prior to the coming in to force of the relevant section of the Adoption and
Children Act 2002 in England and Wales on the 30th of December 2005 no two
people could adopt a child jointly unless they were a married couple. The
effect of the adoption laws prior to 30 Dec 05 was that although two people
in non a married partnership might both be filling a parental role in a
child's life only the person who was granted the Adoption Order was a parent
of the child in the eyes of the law, be it a gay couple or man and a woman
living together. If the single adoptive parent died the partner had no
legal rights to parent the child and the child could be forcible removed
from a person it regarded as its other parent. I can not think of anything
LESS "in the interest of the child".
It would be wrong in any modern civilised nation to pass a law that
permitted a non married mixed gender couple to adopt together and at the
same time have a law that forbade a same sex couple from doing so whilst
allowing one member of that partnership to adopt alone regardless of sexual
orientation.
In a world where many children are not able to remain with their natural
parents for variety of reasons and people willing to give to give children
over a year of age a family are at a rarity, the changes made to the law in
England and Wales by the 2002 Act are very much in the best interest of
'looked after' children in need of a family.
So sad then is it not, to see such bigotry and ignorance rife on an internet
group on MSN and run by an organisation that claims such high moral values
for its self as Trackers International does? Add to that the evident racial
intolerance and religious bigotry on the Forgotten Mothers group.
Make up your own mind
http://groups.msn.com/ForgottenMothers-/general.msnw
As you will see from its website, that group is the discussion group of
Trackers International
http://www.uktrackers.co.uk/
I see that Trackers International claims that it still undertakes what it
refers to as "Mediation", "Our mediators work with you and your loved one to
ensure a successful reunion". That is what those with a descent command of
the English language refer to as Intermediary Services.
Trackers International also claims to undertake what it calls "Advocacy"
which I suspect amounts to what the Adoption and Children Act 2002 refers to
as Counselling. See http://www.uktrackers.co.uk/ti_serv.htm
The Adoption and Children Act 2002 and Regulations that came in to force on
30 Dec 2005 strictly forbid any organisation which is not a registered
Adoption Support Agency or Adoption Society or Local Authority Social
Service from providing counselling or intermediary services in connection
with adoption.
Inevitably anyone undertaking such work will come into contact with people
whose sexual orientation, race, ethnic origin and religious beliefs are
amongst those so heavily maligned on the Forgotten Mothers MSN group run by
Trackers International
http://groups.msn.com/ForgottenMothers-/messages.msnw
The Commission for Social Care Inspection (the CSCI) is the organisation in
England charged with policing facilities for post adoption services. See
http://www.everychildmatters.gov.uk/_files/EE53BDB0934623D6B7B841100456C3D4.
pdf
The CSCI seems to be failing altogether in that part of its role. However if
enough of us express our concerns directly to the CSCI and back that up with
letters to our own MPs asking them to question the relevant Ministers at the
Department for Health and DfES (which overseas adoption service) as to why
Trackers International is allowed to continue to operate? Then perhaps,
something might be done.
Robin Harritt
http://harritt.eu
*
adoptive mother became ill with breast cancer, she died about month after my
7th birthday. From the age of six and half years I was brought up almost
entirely by my adoptive father. He never remarried, as far I know he was not
gay, I know that I am not. There was not and never has been any law in
Britain to have prevented him enlisting the help of another man in my
upbringing, I would not have felt disadvantaged in anyway if he had.
From the very first day that the institution of legal adoption begun in
England and Wales on the 1st of January 1927 it has always been possible for
a single of either gender to adopt a child. Under the 1927 Act there were
restriction on a single male adopting a female child. From the time that
male homosexuality was decriminalised in 1967 there has been no law prevent
a single gay man from adopting a child and at the same time living with a
partner of the same sex. Lesbianism has never been illegal in the UK and
since the 1st January 1927 there has been no law to prevent a single woman
applying to adopt a child and living with that child and another woman.
Prior to the coming in to force of the relevant section of the Adoption and
Children Act 2002 in England and Wales on the 30th of December 2005 no two
people could adopt a child jointly unless they were a married couple. The
effect of the adoption laws prior to 30 Dec 05 was that although two people
in non a married partnership might both be filling a parental role in a
child's life only the person who was granted the Adoption Order was a parent
of the child in the eyes of the law, be it a gay couple or man and a woman
living together. If the single adoptive parent died the partner had no
legal rights to parent the child and the child could be forcible removed
from a person it regarded as its other parent. I can not think of anything
LESS "in the interest of the child".
It would be wrong in any modern civilised nation to pass a law that
permitted a non married mixed gender couple to adopt together and at the
same time have a law that forbade a same sex couple from doing so whilst
allowing one member of that partnership to adopt alone regardless of sexual
orientation.
In a world where many children are not able to remain with their natural
parents for variety of reasons and people willing to give to give children
over a year of age a family are at a rarity, the changes made to the law in
England and Wales by the 2002 Act are very much in the best interest of
'looked after' children in need of a family.
So sad then is it not, to see such bigotry and ignorance rife on an internet
group on MSN and run by an organisation that claims such high moral values
for its self as Trackers International does? Add to that the evident racial
intolerance and religious bigotry on the Forgotten Mothers group.
Make up your own mind
http://groups.msn.com/ForgottenMothers-/general.msnw
As you will see from its website, that group is the discussion group of
Trackers International
http://www.uktrackers.co.uk/
I see that Trackers International claims that it still undertakes what it
refers to as "Mediation", "Our mediators work with you and your loved one to
ensure a successful reunion". That is what those with a descent command of
the English language refer to as Intermediary Services.
Trackers International also claims to undertake what it calls "Advocacy"
which I suspect amounts to what the Adoption and Children Act 2002 refers to
as Counselling. See http://www.uktrackers.co.uk/ti_serv.htm
The Adoption and Children Act 2002 and Regulations that came in to force on
30 Dec 2005 strictly forbid any organisation which is not a registered
Adoption Support Agency or Adoption Society or Local Authority Social
Service from providing counselling or intermediary services in connection
with adoption.
Inevitably anyone undertaking such work will come into contact with people
whose sexual orientation, race, ethnic origin and religious beliefs are
amongst those so heavily maligned on the Forgotten Mothers MSN group run by
Trackers International
http://groups.msn.com/ForgottenMothers-/messages.msnw
The Commission for Social Care Inspection (the CSCI) is the organisation in
England charged with policing facilities for post adoption services. See
http://www.everychildmatters.gov.uk/_files/EE53BDB0934623D6B7B841100456C3D4.
The CSCI seems to be failing altogether in that part of its role. However if
enough of us express our concerns directly to the CSCI and back that up with
letters to our own MPs asking them to question the relevant Ministers at the
Department for Health and DfES (which overseas adoption service) as to why
Trackers International is allowed to continue to operate? Then perhaps,
something might be done.
Robin Harritt
http://harritt.eu
*