The Adoption Files

Michelle Madden is a fellow Baby Scoop era adoptee. She is also a mom, a Reading Specialist who has been working as a Special Education teacher for many years, and a marvelous person. Join us as we talk about the crucial nature of medical histories, and the difficulties of navigating not just one, but two countries bureaucracies in her search for answers. 

Baby Scoop Era: The Baby Scoop Era was a period of time from roughly 1945 to the 1970s. The Baby Scoop Era was characterized by the shaming of unwed mothers into relinquishing their children for adoption. Adoptions were often shrouded in secrecy, and the falsification of birth records was common. 

Grey Market Adoption: this is an adoption that takes place through a lawyer rather than through an agency. They are sometimes facilitated by doctors. They are legal, but ethically questionable.

Clinical Geneticist: a clinical geneticist is a doctor who works with patients dealing with conditions related to a hereditary issue

Adoptee-centric therapist: an adoptee centric therapist is a therapist educated in the issues that confront adopted people. Often, the therapists are adoptees themselves, and uniquely situated to understand the challenges adoptees face.

Illinois adoptee access to records law: In 2011, Illinois amended their laws, allowing adoptees born before 1946full access to their original birth certificates. Adoptees born after that date who are over 21years of age may receive their original birth certificate if their birth parent did not file a veto before November of 2011.

*note: I am new at this podcast business. You will hear me say Oops at the beginning of this broadcast. Do not be alarmed. That was me realizing I had accidentally hit record before I was ready to record. I thought, I will just edit that out later. If only my computer was so agreeable. I am learning as I go along. 🙂

Julie Ryan McGue is the author of  the award winning memoir Twice a Daugher; a Search for Identity, Family and Belonging. To say her book is well-written does not convey how beautifully Julie communicates her journey as she navigates the complex emotional interactions involved in obtaining answers for herself and her twin sister. 

Julie Ryan Mcgue can be found on Facebook @juliemcguewrites, on Instagram @juliermcgue and on Twitter @juliermcgue

Resources

Catholic Charities: Catholic Charities provides post-adoption support to adoptees who were adopted through Catholic Charities

Midwest Adoption Center: Midwest Adoption Center provides information and servces to people impacted by adoption and foster care in the state of Illinois

A note on the term Search Angel: I have been told by a Search Angel who works with the Search Squad that, if a person assists an adopted person in their search for documents and information and the work is done for free, they are considered a Search Angel. If a person assists an adoptee and charges a fee, this is not considered a Search Angel, but, rather, a for profit investigator or intermediary. Like many terms associated with adoption, I think there is some confusion about the phrase Search Angel. If you are searching, or hope to search, be aware that there are free services available. Search Squad, the sister group to the Facebook page DNA Detectives, is a group of people trained in genetic genealogy who perform searches free of charge. They are vetted prior to being allowed to perform searches, and must complete training and an apprenticeship. 

For my dear friend, Jean. This episode is also available as a blog post: https://theadoptionfilescom.wordpress.com/2021/10/30/adoptee-remembrance-day-2/

I wrote this in memory of my adoptive, adopted little brother, who I miss every day. Like me, he was not told as a child that we were adopted. I miss him every day. This episode is also available as a blog post: https://theadoptionfilescom.wordpress.com/2021/10/29/adoptee-remembrance-day/

TThis was written as a kind of companiion piece to my interview with Andrea Steiner Coates. I hope you will take a moment to listen. Thank you! this episode is also available as a blog post: https://theadoptionfilescom.wordpress.com/2021/10/28/total-strangers/

Welcome to the Adoption Files Podcast! Today my guest is Andrea Steiner Coates. Andrea is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker, a DNA Search Angel, and a lovely person who is a staunch Adoptee Advocate. Andrea was instrumental in my search for my paternal family. Today we talk about what a search angel is, how they differ from an intermediary, and what kinds of resources exist to assist people in their searches. We also discuss the importance of being prepared for DNA test results, the laws in the state of Michigan that pertain to adoptees, and the need for kindness when an adoptee contacts DNA matches about their family connections. 

Some of the terms:

centimorgan: this is a way to measure and express genetic linkage. It is a measure betwen chromosome markers. Basically, the more centimorgans you share with a genetic match, the closer the relationship

The Green Chart, or The DNA Green Chart: thisis a chart used by many genealogists to determine the likelihood of a certain relatinship. If you google the DNA Green Chart, you should see a chart pop up that lists centimorgan ranges next to likely relationships. 

OBC: original birth certificate

Non-identifying information: information about the persons parents that do not identify them by name or provide information that would allow the adoptee to identify family members. May include parents ages, professions and some medical information. 

Resources for searching:

The Search Squad: a group of volunteers who train to perform DNA based genealogical searches. Their sister group is The DNA Detectives

DNA tests. The most commonly recommmended tests are through Ancestry and 23 and Me. Ancestry has the larger database and has many search functions. 23 and Me has an opt in for medical information that can be very helpful for people seeking answers to medical questions. Other companies include ftdna, gedmatch, myheritagedna. Some sites allow free uploading of dna results to their sites. Some provide some basic search functions for no fee. Most of these services require payment for testing and ongoing access to results and search functions. 

True People Search: this is a free site that can help provide information about people when you are searching. There are other resources such as Newspapers.com and Legacy.com, findagrave, BeenVerified and more. 

This episode is also available as a blog post: https://theadoptionfilescom.wordpress.com/2021/07/25/social-worker-interviews/ Many people are unaware that not all adopted people have access to their original adoption files. As a person adopted from the United Kingdom, I have access. What I found in my files has caused me to have serious questions about adoption practices. This is a quick listen from some of my initial reactions to social worker notes found in my file. Thanks for listening!

This episode is also available as a blog post: https://theadoptionfilescom.wordpress.com/2021/06/22/compelling-evidence/  The requirement that an adopted person present themselves in court in order to convince a stranger that they have a right to something as basic as our medical records is, in my opinion, a violation of our human rights. Too often, adoptees are put through this dehumaninzing experience, only to be denied access. This is a short description of some of the problematic aspects of this topic. The topic will be explored in greater depth in upcoming interviews with other adoptees. Thanks for listening!

This episode is also available as a blog post: https://theadoptionfilescom.wordpress.com/2021/10/21/disclosure-vetoes/  Disclosure vetoes and Redaction clauses are just one more way that our culture fails adopted people. This is a short take on my personal opinion on the topic. Listen to my interviews with Lynn Grubb and Paige L Adams Strickland for more insight into how these laws impact adoptees and our families. Thanks for listening!

Please join me as I interview Paige Strickland, author of Akin to the Truth: a Memoir of Adoption and Identity, and After the Truth, a Memoir. Paige also participated in the anthology The Adoptee Survival Guide, edited by Lynn Grubb. Paige was born and adopted in the state of Ohio. She shares about discovering her right to request her documents via a television program, the benefits of high school research classes, and what it means when your cat screeches. We also discuss the impact of adoptee identity on our children and grandchildren. Thank you for listening!