Would You Return Your Adopted Child?

February 27, 2009

It's a devastating situation for all people involved. Focus On Children adoption agency placed 37 Samoan children with American families under false pretenses. Believing that their kids were coming to the United States for educational purposes, numerous Samoan parents were tricked into sending their offspring to America where unknowing adoptive parents took in the supposed "orphaned" tots and have been raising them as their own.

When the truth surfaced, one adoptive dad felt it was only right to return his daughter to her birth parents. Would you be able to bring yourself to make the same heart-wrenching decision?

18 Comments

2 years 12 weeks

If I'd just adopted the child, then I might. But I've got two kids who have now been with me for 6 and 2 years (since they were infants), and at this point it would be too traumatic for them to leave me and start new lives. But I would definitely want an open relationship with their first parents and would make every effort to have in-person visits and to establish to the kids that these are their parents, too.

3 years 51 weeks

IN A MORMON MINUTE! These children were stolen. These parents were lied too. The children will learn the truth that their lives were equated to a lump of rice and chopped can tuna. The adoption agency owners of Focus on Children, Scott and Karen Banks have no conscience. Scott and Karen Banks have shown no remorse. The owners of Focus on Children have never apologized to the bio-parents or the adopted parents, both whom were lied to and duped. Focus on Children, what a oxymoron.

MaggieLei 4 years 11 weeks

This is an outrage. This is why we are using an agency with international Hague certification. EVERYONE'S hearts are going to be broken- except those at the adoption agency, apparently.

lickety split 4 years 11 weeks

this story makes me ill. i don't think you could just "return" a child w/o more psychological damage. there should be some sort of transistion period because there are 2 sets of people that love and have cared for these children and are loved by these children. you run the risk of the kids having guilt feelings, what horrible people to have done this, and i agree, longer prison terms seem appropriate.

lindssaurussss 4 years 11 weeks

Plus I use to live in Samoa. so when I see the words "adoption" and Samoa i cant really put those two together. it was a great place to grow up.

lindssaurussss 4 years 11 weeks

thats hard. i would return the child even though i would be heartbroken. i wouldnt want to be on a any of these sides.

Niami 4 years 11 weeks

I'd definitely give the child back and hope that the birth parents would allow some sort of contact with him or her as well, such as sending gifts/money.

princess_eab 4 years 11 weeks

I can't believe this - isn't this basically human trafficking? Sick, sick, sick.

SKC Sparkle 4 years 12 weeks

The organization that did this (Focus On Children) should be charged and closed down. Do you know how much trauma this is going to inflict upon everyone involved?!?!

Sarana 4 years 12 weeks

Although hard, the right thing for these children is to be returned to their families. It would be good if they could keep in touch with their American "parents" too. And the people responsible only got probation! They kidnapped 39 children, this is unbelievable. I wonder how many years in prison you get when kidnapping 39 American children.

nymom83 4 years 12 weeks

How on earth could anyone NOT return these children! It's selfish and self-centered. It sounds more like ownership rather than love.

sofi 4 years 12 weeks

That would be incredibly hard but the right thing to do. I can't imagine my biological children not being with me- my heart would ache.

jessie 4 years 12 weeks

wow..unbelievable!! :jawdrop: yes i would. the child needs to be with their biological parents. as heartwrenching as it would be...it would be more heartwrenching for the biological parents finding out that their child was "taken" from them when they didn't know. sad situation all around for everyone.

LaurenG22 4 years 12 weeks

If they want the child back and the child wants to go back to them then it is only fair...

Greggie 4 years 12 weeks

In this situation, how could anyone NOT return the child? Someone who would keep a child under false pretenses isn't exactly shouting "I'm a fit parent!!"

RunninginBoston 4 years 12 weeks

That was sarcasm, btw.

RunninginBoston 4 years 12 weeks

Because if you're poor or from a poor country, you're automatically unfit to be a parent and should have your children taken away. <--Sarcasm.

macgirl 4 years 12 weeks

Wait, what? If I thought I was sending my child off to boarding school (my equivalent) and then they were kidnapped I wouldn't get them back? How is that right or OK?

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