We tend to view adoption in America as a win-win situation: a child in crisis is placed with new, stable parents who want to build a family. Everyone is finally in a position to thrive. That narrative tends to be fairytale-like. And it doesn’t resonate with many adoptees. In this episode, we hear adoptee perspectives on adoption and how we – as a society – can do better. We talk to a domestic infant adoptee from the baby scoop era, a person adopted out of the foster care system, and an international, transracial adoptee. And what we've come to find is that no matter when or how adoptions happen, assumptions about what's best can miss the mark. How can we do better by those impacted by the adoption process and create a system that enables children and families to thrive?

Podcast Guests:

Julie Ryan McGue, author of Twice a Daughter

Jamerika Haynes-Lewis, founder of Clever Jam Communications

Astrid Castro, founder and CEO of adoption Mosaic

**This episode is part of Season 4 on Top of Mind: Assessing Assumptions. Could the systems we've built to keep our communities safe and thriving work better if we weren't so set in our ways?