Many married couples in Alabama can relate to others who, for whatever reasons, are unable to conceive children. Some have no trouble conceiving, but consistently lose their pregnancies through miscarriage. This has prompted many spouses to enter the child adoption process. A couple in another state was thinking along these lines, but their hopes and dreams were abruptly halted when, as they tell it, they learned how prejudiced the family law process for adoption was at the agency they contacted.

Both spouses in this particular situation happen to be of Indian descent. However, neither has family in India and both were born and raised in Great Britain. They are proud of their heritage, and after many failed attempts to have biological children of their own, they decided to adopt.

The couple says they never made it past the initial inquiry with the adoption agency, and were told it would be best if they went to India or tried someplace else to adopt because most of the children available in this particular system are white European and parents of similar race and ethnicity are considered priority candidates for the adoption process. The husband and wife say they could hardly believe their ears and could not fathom that such prejudice was occurring against two able-bodied people wanting to give a child in need a home. In fact, UK Prime Minister Theresa May was a member of Parliament at the time, and she wrote a letter to the adoption agency on the couple’s behalf.

The situation was not resolved, however. The couple has since filed a lawsuit against the adoption agency, claiming they were discriminated against because of their race and ethnicity. There may be others fighting similar battles in Alabama. Regardless one’s location, the chances of obtaining a favorable outcome are generally increased if  experienced and aggressive family law representation is obtained for court.

Source: CBS News, “British couple claims racial discrimination during adoption process“, July 6, 2017