11/17/2020
“Adoption is a Trans Issue”...
This week is the intersection of Trans Awareness Week and National Adoption Month. Today, we select this story entitled “Adoption is a Trans Issue” to highlight just some of the many ways we can choose to bring about awareness for these two important communities.
If you are a LGBTQ+ foster youth or a caregiver learning about your new or current LGBTQ+ family member and are looking for services or resources, visit www.KinshipCareCA.org. Or maybe you are looking for legal resources for adoption. We can help you find support 24/7.
Full story: https://bit.ly/2ILZFBn
Nia Clark shares her story of coming out as transgender, and why she works to raise awareness of the discrimination LGBTQ youth can face within child welfare systems.
November is National Adoption Month, a time to raise awareness of the thousands of children and youth in the U.S. who are awaiting adoption every year.
For youth in foster care, being adopted into a loving and permanent family can be hard for many reasons. I entered foster care when I was 8-years-old. For years, the system failed to give me the supportive and affirming care I needed as an LGBTQ person.
When I was legally adopted at 16, I was just beginning to affirm myself as a young Black trans girl. However, I was forced to choose between my gender identity or having a permanent home and family. When I finally gathered the courage to tell my adoptive mother my truth, she terminated the adoption, just six months after my placement. I was forced back into foster care.
Rather than allowing these experiences to negatively impact my outlook on the future, I decided to use my personal narrative to change the system as a child welfare advocate, practitioner and trainer.
Post submitted by Nia Clark, HRC Foundation All Children - All Families Trainer
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