“I
stand here before you today as a civil rights activist for the
adoption reform movement. But I want to talk about three well-known
activists of other eras who loudly and clearly proclaimed the
need of freedom for their people.
"If
a man named Moses were standing here before us today, I believe
he would be speaking on our behalf and say to our present government
- Let My People Go! Because Moses was not only the leader of the
Jewish nation- he was also the most famous adoptee - one who had
been adopted outside of his Jewish heritage and Jewish faith.
But when he became aware of the bondage his people were in, he
fought and persisted to see that they were set free. The Bible
says that God heard the heartcries of His people. Our heartcries
are now beginning to be heard around this country. We fight against
the plagues of the adoption and child welfare system - the plague
of the sealed record, which always equals cover-up; and the great
plague of all - a corrupt system that has become a billion dollar
business!
"But
I believe that we’re well on our way to the Promised Land,
and that most intelligent, caring individuals really want truth
and openness - not secrecy and lies. This will be a land that
will not see the need to sever birth roots nor eradicate the family
name; a time when guardianship is a more cherished role than ownership.
It will be a land that will not require the control of the social
work profession, nor legislated rules and regulations; a land
where no money need exchange hands (known as "fees")
in order to adopt a child. Our Promised Land will be a land where
adoptees, birthparents, and adoptive parents can come together
and form a circle of love that will be immersed with openness,
honest; and heartfelt caring.
"If
Susan B. Anthony were standing before us today - she, too, would
be speaking out on our behalf. She, too, would be saying, let
these people go.She knew what it meant to be denied rights - rights
that her male counterparts enjoyed. She fought and let the women
of America through the streets and halls of justice so that they
too could have a voice at the ballot box. In 1873, she and 15
other women marched to the voting booth and exercised their God-given
right to vote - and for this she stood trial..She was prosecuted
and fined - a fine she refused to pay. How many of us are going
to have to stand trial, pay fines, and be prosecuted for demanding
or exercising our God-given right to our original birth certificate
or other records concerning our own lives?
"If
Martin Luther King could be here today, he would most likely be
at the forefront of our March. He would be raising his hands,
his head, and his voice, heavenward and shouting to the world
- Let these people go! In one of his famous speeches, Martin Luther
King said, "I have a dream that someday our people will not
be judged by the color of their skin" We share a similar
dream - that the day will soon come when we will not be judged
or branded because we bear the name of ’adoptee,’ birthparent’
or adoptive parent.’
"We
pray for the day that we will not have to bargain, plead, beg,
petition orpay for what is rightfully ours. We anticipate the
day when legal documents called birth certificates will no longer
be falsified - when birthmothers are no longer signed into the
hospital under an assumed name, given them by an agency or attorney
- we look toward the day when a simple request for information
will be granted - and when Big Brother no longer stands overus
with folded arms guarding our most prized possession - our BIRTHRIGHT!
"Finally,
I want to share the words of a poem written by MaryAnne Cohen,
a birth mother with great insight and foresight. It’s entitled
'THIS TIME MUST COME'
"TIME
WILL COME when our tragedy will not be replayed,
When no child will be torn out of the arms of love
into the arms of money.
When all births will be blessed, all equal.
And there will be no word remembered to brand a child
born outside society’s ties, no recording of legal lies…
When love is more lasting than papers,
and no child is deprived of either heritage or nurturing,
even when they come from separate places.
And it is finally seen that blood and home are not the same,
And neither replaces the other,
and there is no quota for love…
"TIME WILL COME when social workers are to serve, not sever;
When they know it is better to unite than separate,
To be true than to lie, to be seen than to hide,
To accept than renounce, that the give and nurturing of life
are both sacred and deserving of respect;
That all parents are real parent, not rivals.
That love is stronger than fear of laws or time,
and cannot be terminated, cannot be legislated, cannot be denied…
"TIME WILL COME when all children can grow,
become real,
cast off shadows,
renew or sever ties by their own choice,
be responsible, BE FREE!
When our bondage ends, and we answer to our children;
Answer with the gift of sight, gift of words, gift of sorrow…
When every person has the right to trace their roots
in their mother’s face, their father’s eyes…
When nobody is condemned to eternal childhood,
and no mother cries forever…
"THIS
TIME MUST COME"
Copyright
© 1989, 2001 Sandy
Musser.
Visit Sandy's website at http://www.angelfire.com/fl2/musser
