Since 1993, November has been proclaimed National Adoption Month to focus attention on the increasing number children waiting to be adopted. To create more awareness of interracial adoption, Noah Kruis, a Program Assistant with the Mosaic Community, invited Professor Elizabeth Vander Lei, Jackie Bremer, Katie Van Beek and Shanda Landman to speak about interracial adoption Monday night in Kalsbeek-Huizinga.

There are many reasons to adopt children. Bremer, the mother of an adopted Navaho Indian daughter, said simply, “Many children need homes.”

Vander Lei, a professor in the English Department and mother of an adopted Korean daughter, brought up the problem of infertility with some couples.

Landman, a student adopted from India, was adopted because her single mother wanted to have a child. Van Beek, the sister of an adopted Korean brother, said her parents “wanted to adopt a child with special needs.”

The number of orphan visas issued for intercountry adoptions in 1999, according to the Immigration and Naturalization Service, was 16,396. Russia was the greatest source for intercountry adoptions, followed by China, South Korea, Guatemala, Romania, Vietnam, India, Ukraine and Cambodia. Intercountry adoption is an possible alternative to domestic adoption, especially for those who want to adopt an infant.

Many families choose this option because it is easier and less costly than adopting an infant from the U.S. Landman said her mom adopted her because “India was one of the only countries that would allow her to adopt as a single mother.”

Vander Lei stated, “We were open to all ethnicities,” even though birthmothers and social workers seem to conspire against adopting interracially. Bremer did not request a Navaho daughter, but was very happy to have the opportunity to adopt a healthy baby. Bremer’s daughter is now adopting a Navaho daughter of her own from New Mexico.

Many families try to integrate their child’s culture into their American life. Van Beek said her brother “attended a culture camp from kindergarten to fifth grade.” At the camp, they focused on the Korean culture.

Vander Lei said, “Since we can’t give Maria [her 18-month-old Korean daughter] her birth mother, we want to give her her birth country.”

Bremer made trips west with her daughter, Carol. Last year, Carol was inducted into a Navaho tribe. Bremer described the event as “an interracial celebration attended by both Navahos and whites.”

The National Adoption Inform-ation Clearinghouse suggests techniques to help an interracial adopted child develop a strong sense of cultural identity. First, it advises that they become intensely invested in parenting. This means there are high demands to adopting inter-racially, but also many rewards.

Second, the adoptive parents should tolerate no racially or ethnically biased remarks. It also recommends that adopting families surround themselves with supportive friends and family and that they teach the child that every ethnicity has something to contribute, while pointing out the similarities between cultures.

Many difficult and rewarding experiences come along with interracial adoption. While most young kids worry about getting his or her favorite toy for Christmas, adopted kids are questioning their background and parents. Professor Vander Lei pointed out the child’s difficulty.

“The kid still has to grieve,” she said.

There are a diverse number of cultures in the world, but there are also similarities between people. That diversity should not inhibit attempts to minister to those in need.

“As Christians, we are asked to take care of the widows and orphans,” Bremer said.