To the editor:

Having read the article in Sunday’s paper about the couple who adopted the triplets from Ethiopia I found myself with mixed feelings. I’m sincerely glad these children will have opportunities otherwise never dreamed and know their parents are thankful for their new family. I think about the vast numbers of children who have been adopted from overseas (discounting the celebrity fad), and while happy for the prospects of these children’s futures I think about the thousands of wonderful children of many ethnic and racial heritages in this country who anxiously await adoption every day.

Some would say they are languishing in a state system. If that statement rings true, then are they not equally as sympathetic as children languishing in other poor countries? It is common knowledge that our state systems are woefully underfunded, understaffed and not ideal parents. Most children will age out of the system without the same opportunities as foreign-born adoptees despite their citizenship. What about their prospects? Do they not deserve loving parents? If it’s a shortage of infants in the United States, then we’re looking at a shortage of vision by prospective parents.

Private adoptions abound in this country though mostly for white infants with parents who wouldn’t want a Third World or “system” baby anyway. Pro-life proponents hail adoption as an alternative. If foreign adoptions continue at what seems an increasing rate, then we need to investigate a system (ours) that doesn’t present its children as adoptable. All children need love.

Catherine Bolton,

Lawrence