"We've whitewashed stranger adoption for so long we've blanched the emotion from it. We're told over and over that there is no greater love than to sacrifice your child for the greater good" Barbara Sumner, Tree of Strangers, p87. Listen Here: play.acast.com/s/two-lucky-bds/s1e10abraham-isaacwentupahill Released on May 30th, 2021 (run time 52m 07s) this episode focuses specifically of two key issues: the rights of adopted persons and the potential of restorative justice practices to enhance wellbeing for those involved in the adoptive experience. Rights of Adopted Persons The episode opened with a discussion of the rights of adopted persons. In Tree of Strangers Barbara Sumner details how she felt following the reunion with one of her biological grandparents, and they discussed the death of her biological mother. Barbara noted that she felt that "she did not belong to me in any way. I was an interloper. To know my mother was not a right. It was a favour", p85. This experience is mirrored by many adopted persons as they seek to reconnect with the family that they have lost. However, while finding birth parents can be problematic for adopted persons, and while reunions can be fraught and difficult, reunion is something that many people who have been been donor-conceived will never achieve, as is outlined in this recent article: www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/opinion/125225832/gaping-holes-in-law-covering-info-for-donorconceived-people#:~:text=Sperm%20floating%20to%20the%20ovule.&text=The%20HART%20law%20mandated%20that,access%20once%20they%20turned%2018. The authors of this poignant article note that, while advisory committees have been created to discuss the issues surrounding donor-conception, to date none of these committees have sought input from any donor-conceived people. In many ways this is similar to successive considerations of adoption legislation which often fails to consider the voice of adopted persons. Also in the news during the week was an article about calls in the United Kingdom for an apology into forced adoption practices during the baby scoop era. Forced adoptions in the UK have been described, by many impacted by the practice, as "state sanctioned abuse". www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2021/may/27/uk-forced-adoption-state-sanctioned-abuse-unmarried-mothers In response to calls for some form of action or response to this, the UK Government has agreed to investigate forced adoption practices www.bbc.com/news/uk-57274323 While an apology was made by the Federal Government in Australia on 21 March, 2013 an inquiry is currently underway there into forced adoptions and the impact that this has had on those involved. Barbara recently spoke about this in an interview on Radio New Zealand. www.rnz.co.nz/national/programmes/lately/audio/2018796091/hopes-aust-forced-adoption-inquiry-could-influence-nz-lawmakers Following the 2013 apology, some resources were made available to people impacted by forced adoptions in Australia, but many feel that this does not go far enough to address the issues. A full copy of the 2013 apology, along with information about the current inquiry and links to the resources for those impacted by forced adoptions in Australia can be found here: www.dss.gov.au/our-responsibilities/families-and-children/programs-services/forced-adoption-practices To date, despite repeated calls for similar investigations to occur in New Zealand, successive New Zealand Governments have made no attempts to consider the issue. Restorative Justice Following on from this discussion Sande explored the story of Abraham and Isaac, as referenced by Barbara in her book. The story of Abraham and Isaac (which is found in Genesis 22:1-19) is complex and nuanced. www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Genesis%2022%3A1-19&version=NRSV Like all stories in the Christian scriptures, this is a story that should not be read literally, but rather in context. In exploring the story Sande references some thinking that the late Lord Jonathan Sacks has done on the passage. His thoughts can be found here rabbisacks.org/vayera-5771-the-binding-of-isaac-a-new-interpretation/ Needless to say the story has multiple layers of meaning. Often it is a passage that is used to reinforce the narrative of willing sacrifice, a narrative that was carefully (and cruelly) woven through adoptive practices around the world - suggesting that sacrificing (or giving up a child) was the greatest gift that a mother could make. Sande then explored the potential of applying restorative justice practices to the adoptive story. While the restorative justice process falls within a typically legal framework, Sande asked us to consider how this might be applied to the experience of exploring the impact of the adoptive experience. This will be the focus of a future episode. You can learn more about the use of restorative justice within a legal framework here: www.justice.govt.nz/courts/criminal/charged-with-a-crime/how-restorative-justice-works/ Auckland Writers Festival 2021 Mention was also made of Barbara's presentation at the 2021 Auckland Writers Festival. Her powerful talk can be seen here: www.youtube.com/watch?v=UruFej2HZuA
You Might want to Check these podcasts out:
As part of this episode we also highlight another amazing podcasts from our friends at That's Not Canon productions. If you are interested in having a listen you can find it here: The Floof and Pupper Podcast (a podcast about all things doggy) thatsnotcanon.com/floofandpupper If you liked it then feel free to share with your friends.
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