#CRYSTAL CLEAR MEMORIES SERIES#

However, I realize with the lottery that adoption is, I too could easily have been one of the 50,000 adoptees without citizenship. They weren’t allowed to take me out of the country during this five-year period and prior to our court date, they, along with our family friend were interviewed to ensure a legitimate inter-country adoption.Īs adopted person, it’s easy to fall into the trap of playing the What If? game but it’s rarely useful for me to hypothesize my life. They said it was always on their list to follow through on after five years at the guidance of the adoption agency. A few years ago I asked my adoptive parents how they knew they needed to go through the naturalization process for me to become a U.S. The governments of our sending and receiving countries have yet to answer this question. citizens if their adoptive parents are U.S. People have asked me, “Shouldn’t adopted people be U.S. I would learn over the years that hers was not a unique experience as there are an estimated 50,000 intercountry adoptees living without citizenship not only from Korea but also Haiti, India, Iran, Vietnam, Costa Rica and any other country that has sent children to the U.S. I remember feeling quite amazed at her situation, somewhat envious that she, unlike myself, hadn’t been stripped of something so essential to my Korean identity and heritage. She knew what she needed to do but just hadn’t gotten around to it. I met a woman who hadn’t returned because she was still a Korean citizen and couldn’t get a U.S. At the time, I didn’t realize the significance of that day but it certainly seemed special and important if I had to get dressed up and was allowed to miss school.Īs I was preparing to return to Korea for the first time in 2001, return was a common topic amongst adopted Koreans I met with the perpetual question, “Have you gone back?”. The book is a bit yellowed and the flag a bit discolored but the memory crystal clear. I still have the book, flag and memory of that significant day. We went out for lunch to celebrate and our family friend gifted me a book about the U.S. citizenship with all its rights and privileges. We went to the courthouse with a family friend where I stood before a judge who by the power vested in him, granted me U.S. This day was different because my adoptive mother was giving me permission to miss school. I had nearly perfect attendance and if I faked being sick to stay home just because I didn’t feel like going to school, I had to write my own excuse note to my teacher. My own experience in becoming a citizen involved missing school in kindergarten, something that never happened in my family. However, our efforts were blocked by members of the Congressional Adoption Caucus. In addition, we worked to amend the CCA to include all adopted people. We wrote letters on behalf of Russell Greene and Kairi Shepherd and were able to halt their deportations. Due to negligence on the part of the adoption agencies, adopters and our sending countries, this has resulted in an estimated 50,000 intercountry adoptees living without citizenship. However, it excluded anyone who was 18 or over as of February 2001. The CCA granted automatic citizenship to children adopted from abroad. Since 2011, I’ve volunteered with other internationally adopted people to close the loophole of the Child Citizenship Act of 2000. The 50,000 adoptees living in the USA without American citizenshipĪt the same time, not all intercountry adoptees to the U.S.

#CRYSTAL CLEAR MEMORIES SERIES#

This series is supported by the Korea Press Foundation’s Press Promotion Fund. By listening to the voices of women who grew up in other societies and then returned to the country of their birth, Ilda hopes to hear their experiences and the messages they hold for Korean society. The issue of overseas adoption is connected to issues of women’s and children rights, poverty and discrimination, and race and migration. Editor’s note: South Korea has a long history of sending its children abroad for adoption.

Crystal clear memories