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The Open Record, ISSN#1044-1956, is a quarterly electronic newsletter -
a FREE Public Research Service of Americans For Open Records (AmFOR)
http://www.amfor.net/
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Adoptee War Casualties
Fall 2001
================================================================
IN THIS ISSUE:
o ADOPTEE WAR CASUALTIES
3-Year Old Adoptee Perishes in World Trade Center Terrorist Attack
Adoptees Speak Out on Going To War with No Right to Origins
o INDIGO CHILDREN, ADHD & ADOPTION
o MORE PRO-ADOPTION CENSORSHIP
"Adoption Thought Police" Now Pressuring Associated Press (AP) &
Other Media
Online Adoption Issues Forums Heavily Infiltrated by Organized
Propagandists
o PRESERVING THE TRUTH
Adoption Newsletters Directory & Archived Adoption Literature Links
The Open Record Archives
o EXPECTANT FAMILIES HOTLINE
o EDITORIAL
War, Hate Groups & Adoption Activism
o FEATURED SEARCH
More Searches
o LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
"Successful Search" Stats?
Life After Opening Records & Abolishing Adoption
================================================================
ADOPTEE WAR CASUALTIES
3-Year Old Adoptee Perishes in World Trade Center Terrorist Attack
David Brandhorst, age 3, who was adopted as an infant, and his adopter,
Ronald Gamboa and Gamboa's male partner, Daniel Brandhorst, were victims
of United Flight 175 hijacking-crash attack into World Trade Center on
Sept. 11, 2001. The lingering question is: Will young David's "birth"
mother ever be told? Did she know that her child accompanied his two
gay adopters on their frequent plane trips to visit friends (LATimes.com
archives,10-13-01), instead of enjoying a normal childhood with other
3-year old playmates safely at home? For more on this story with a
PHOTO of David Brandhorst and Ronald Gamboa, a new web page is under
construction: http://www.amfor.net/war.html
NOTE: Only 16% of adoptees are being placed in 2-parent families.
(Source of this stat from study for the National Census is at top of
main page at http://www.amfor.net/antiadoption/)
Adoptees Speak Out on Going To War with No Right to Origins
"Birth" parents who have not yet found their adult adopted children have
told AmFOR of their concern that their children could possibly be killed
in battle before having had a chance to reconnect with them. Similar
thoughts by adoptees have been expressed -- not only since the September
11, 2001 terrorist attacks on America, but also during past wars....
In "Man's Last Wish Before Gulf Duty: Meet Mother" (Flint Journal,
Michigan, 12-28-90): Just before being sent to fight in the Gulf War,
adoptee Bob Gaen said, "I'm not looking for those people to ruin their
lives. I'm looking to find my backbone, to find my blood." He always
had been curious about his birthparents, but he actually began pursuing
their identity after his daughter, Rebecca, developed heart problems
before birth.
In "Gulf Bound GI Finds Real Mom" (Saginaw News, Michigan, 2-18-91):
"Army reservist Christy Matthews, 19, reunited with her mother, Karen
Raef, at Fort Campbell, Kentucky. They were joined by Christy's
adoptive mother, Jean Matthews. Christy, said she believes anyone of
legal age to enlist in the military is also old enough to know who they
are and who their parents are. Christy is training for deployment to
the Gulf."
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INDIGO CHILDREN, ADHD & ADOPTION
In "Super Brained Kids" (The Unexplained, on family-oriented PAX TV,
10-5-01), host-narrator, Jerry Orbach, explained that children, in
alarming numbers, are being diagnosed with Attention Hyperactivity
Disorder (ADHD). Their alleged ADHD is being controlled by medications
such as Ritalin, (a mood altering amphetamine that has the surprising
effect of sedating these children -- but with possibly long term side
effects presently believed to have played a role in violent acts by
young people, such as in the Columbine school shootings). New studies
are proving that these children show remarkable intelligence. Called
"Indigo Children," they are actually potential geniuses whose limitless
capabilities are being suppressed rather than encouraged.
Almost all foster kids being offered for adoption via photo-ads in North
American Council for Adoptable Children (NACAC) newsletters are
reportedly on medications for ADHD. Most of the incarcerated adoptees
whose case histories are documented in Chosen Children were given these
drugs in childhood for alleged "hyperactiveness" See
http://www.amfor.net/chosenchildren.html
================================================================
MORE PRO-ADOPTION CENSORSHIP
"Adoption Thought Police" Now Pressuring Associated Press (AP) & Other
Media
In "Warner Brothers Caves In to Pro Adoption Censorship" (The Open
Record-Summer 2001) it was reported that Warner Brothers TV producers
changed the title of its new Fall sitcom, from Maybe I'm Adopted to
Maybe It's Me due to pressure from special interests who want to control
even use of the word "Adopted." Phase 2 of Adoption Language
Censorship is now afoot. In Adoption Umbrella Digest online (Number
446, 9-23-01), Nancy S. Ashe (sass@kom.forthnet.gr) forwarded a "final
adoption language" letter from R. Michael Feazel, Rachel Adelson, and
Alan Breznick, (organized adoption propagandists aka Accurate Adoption
Reporting, 2115 Ward Court, NW, Dept. MF, Washington, DC 20037). They
drafted the joint-letter to the Associated Press (AP) and other
stylebook editors to dictate what is and is not acceptable with regard
to adoption topics. Basically, this self-appointed committee of censors
decided that a person's adoptive status should never be mentioned in a
news article if not "relevant" or "essential," and, of course, they
decide what is "relevant" or "essential" for the public to know....
Secrecy is essential to an abusive system.
It's obviously embarassing to the adoption industry when a writer does
let it slip that an adoptee murdered his adopter, since adoption
propaganda tells us that adoption has only win-win outcomes. Not do The
Adoption Thought Police want you to think it's "relevant" that Tom
Cruise-Nicole Kidman have "adopted children" caught in their divorce
because it doesn't paint adopters in a perfect light nor exemplify
adoptess' "better life" with strangers that no social worker can
guarantee. Nor do these Adoption Thought Police want a writer to state
that someone "gave up" their child to adoption or why, lest we take a
closer look at these closeted women and baby brokers' methods of
procurement,. Nor to allow media to say that someone adopted because
they "couldn't have a baby of their own" but rather to perpetuate the
myth that an adopted child IS their own child--The falsified birth
certificate says so. And if the media says so, it must be true.
The Thought Police fear that the truth will hurt -- the adoption
industry. Considering the damage adoption has done to so many, hurting
the adoption industry is not a bad thing. Like any multi-billion dollar
industry -- Tobacco, for instance -- the adoption industry needs "good
press" to flourish--via half-truths, lies, payoffs, censorship--whatever
it takes. To view comments by those damaged by adoption, go to AmFOR's
petition home page at http://www.amfor.net/antiadoption/ -- Feel free to add
your name and comment if you are so inclined.
Online Adoption Issues Forums Heavily Infiltrated by Organized
Propagandists
Just as our nation has been infiltrated by terrorists, the Adoption
Thought Police have blatantly and heavily infiltrated public forums and
message boards on Internet, particularly with regard to adoption
issues. Their job is to surf these sites 24/7 in shifts and immediately
respond to any "politically incorrect" negative adoption issues raised
with disinformation, flaming, whatever it takes to distract and sabotage
the discussion. Often they do this as a "team" of two or more.
What adoption issues are "politically incorrect?" Preservation of the
biological family. Taking the profit out of adoption. Favoring
guardianhsip and other more ethical forms of custody over adoption. The
abolition of adoption.
Let's face it, the adoption industry is a multi-billion dollar industry
that is not about to give that up. Like all major industries, it wants
to expand, not go out of business. Like all major industries who hire
marketing companies, the adoption industry pays the Adoption Thought
Police to intimidate and manipulate. The adoption industry perpetuates
itself on the backs of adoptees and "birth" families. So don't waste
your time, energies and keyboarding answering the Adoption Thought
Police. Invest instead in spreading the truth via your own websites,
articles, newsletters and, if you can swing it, via identified mass
media (book publishers, newspapers, tv and radio stations that haven't
yet censored the "A" word)....and by example. If you raise your own
children to understand what is happening and to care, there will be less
and less adoption.
================================================================
ADOPTION NEWSLETTERS & ARCHIVED LITERATURE LINKS
Websites Link to Adoption Newsletters, Books, Movies, etc.
Here's a great link to Directory of Adoption Newsletters (both from
adoption agencies and activists, for subscription fee and for free -- in
the U.S., Canada, U.K., Australia & Netherlands)-
http://www.familyhelper.net/ad/adnlu.html
For those who haven't already discovered Bill Gage's humongous book list
& links at Reader's Guide to Adoption Literature --
http://members.aol.com/billgage/lit-list.htm
The Open Record Archives
AmFOR is creating an Archive on its website -- for back issues of The
Open Record newsletter, the newsletter of Americans For Open Records.
The first two electronic issues, for Summer and Fall of 2001, will be
the first to be available, and all future issues, by quarterly issue
date
We hope to eventually have all past hardcopy issues since 1989 online
also, to a provide a chronological history of adoption issues.
legislation, law cases and and activism at
http://www.amfor.net/OpenRecord.html.
================================================================
FEATURED SEARCHES
Featured Search
Myra Lee Battey is her adoptive name. She was born in Korea, allegedly
July 17, 1963, and allegedly abandoned at age 2. But she may have been
born as much as a year earlier. Just as several states altered even
vital information such as date of birth on adoptees' "amended" birth
certificates, Holt International, in Seoul, Korea, where she was first
placed, was notorious for changing birth dates of foreign children (even
when they knew the true ate, "birth" parents' names etc) to make
children "more appealing" to prospective American adopters. This
practice, of course, makes it virtually impossible to find "birth"
families or be "matched" on a reunion registry years later. A doctor
noted on Myra's medical exam record required just prior to her placement
at age 5-1/2 that she had cerebral palsey--and also that she "seemed
older" than her reported age. A doctor should know. A letter in her
adoption file indicates there is no registration of her birth at Won Ju
City Hall records office, the province where she may have been found or
taken.
Mira, like other Korean adoptees in those years, was als given a made-up
"birth" name,
Mi Ra Ahn. There are many American adoptees with "birth" name Ahn. Her
"amended" birth record was created in Riverside County, California where
her adopters, Harold E. and Diana S. Battey resided and where she was
placed after arriving via San Francisco 12-20-68. Holt (Oregon) has
released all that they say is in their file but we are not certain that
there isn't more in her Korea file. Her search fees have been waived
but no search has been ordered, so far.
Myra does have PHOTOS of herself at ages 2 and 5 which her "birth"
family would reognize and we've been posting them online and providing
them to Korea searchers, agencies, adoptee registries, GOAL-Korea,
media, etc.. Contact Myra directly at Mi38ra@aol.com
More Searches:
For the latest by-state free photo-listings of incarcerated adoptees
searching for "birth" families, go to ADOPTED PRISONER PENPALS at
http://www.amfor.net/prisoners/
================================================================
EXPECTANT FAMILIES HOTLINE
On 10-1-01, Adoption: Legalized Lies announced its new 24-Hour Hotline
for Expectant Families 1-866-41TRUTH. The hotline is designed to
provide information and support to expectant families who may be
considering adoption. Calls will be answered by true parents and
adopted adults who can give families information that they would not
hear from an adoption agency or social worker as to the long term
effects on all parties when babies are surrendered to adoption.
================================================================
EDITORIAL
War, Hate Groups & Adoption Activism
The United States declared War on Terrorism. The main purpose of
terrorism is to instill fear in order to distract and to manipulate
behavior to weaken a society. Anthrax mailed to media (so far to NBC, a
newspaper and Microsoft and undoubtedly more to follow) results in such
reports dominating the news, along with community preparedness
announcements, bringing the copycasts, hoaxters, hate groups and other
nut cases out of the woodwork.
Ever notice how hate mail and unsupported allegations in posts at public
forums online are always by persons who hide their identities and
affiliations behind screen aliases and phony e-mail headers?
The freedom to question laws that violate our freedoms, as open records
activists and anti-adoption activists do, is what our brothers and
sisters have given their lives in many wars to enable us to do.
Advocating civil and human rights, and condemning a system that tramples
on our rights, is not only patriotic but also moral and just plain
common sense.
I recommend the movie Captain Corelli's Violin for a dramatic
fictionalized portrayal of true events in WWII when common sense and
morality overcame misplaced loyalties when reality was up close and
personal.
=================================================================
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
"Successful" Search Stats?
E-mail message sent to AmFOR, Oct. 11, 2001, from sociologist, Faith
Henry, Faith235@aol.com:
"....I have just completed a manuscript about successfully finding and
happily reuniting with my entire "birth" family--both parents, 4 full
siblings, etc. But I'm having little luck locating statistics regarding
"successful" searches (e.g., how many adoptees locate both "birth"
parents-- or both "birth" parents who subsequently were married to each
other--and full siblings, etc.). I suspect such stats are rare but I
would like actual any percentages if they exist....."
AmFOR REPLY: As you know, even if the arbitrary term "successful" was
broken down into many sub-categories, the concept of "successful" is
subjective according to expectations of the "finder" and the "found."
It would probably be difficult to get a reliable figure because there is
no way to monitor the results of ALL who begin searches via one searcher
and then complete the search on their own, or with another searcher,
unless they inform us. Even some registry stats may be inflated or
skewed. Out of about 20,000 contacts with AmFOR in more than 12 years,
12,000 are KNOWN to completed their searches--nearly all that AmFOR had
a hand in. It is generally assumed that if we don't hear back, they no
longer need us because they completed their searches. Very few of
AmFOR's searches were never completed, that I know of, usually due to
black market adoptions and falsified or non-existent original records,
though we sometimes "got lucky" on those as well. That leaves several
thousand "unknowns."
The Ultimate Search Book-2002 includes testimonials by individuals who
successfully completed searches by utilizing this book which is now
updated to include tons of online and offline resources--mostly free
search help.
There have been many polls and surveys over the years. Most stats about
searching deal with numbers of state and private registry "matches" or
Confidential Intermediary (CI) searches completed, or in terms of what
percentage refused contact. So we know that private registries produce
more reunions than state-run or agency-run registries, and we know that
private searchers and individuals doing their own searches end their
searches with reunions than individuals using public or private adoption
agencies or other intermediaries to make their contacts. Here's a link
to Stats of 321 CI Intermediary Searches,1920's to 1980's, at
http://www.geocities.com/adoption_connections/stats.htm
AmFOR has collected many types of adoption stats over the years, from
both governmental and private sector organizations, pollsters and
media--including some stats on searching, registries, etc--and published
the compilation as a free e-book online, called Statistics of Adoption
at http://www.amfor.net/statistics.html.
Life After Opening Records and Abolishing Adoption
Because some have wondered what would happen after opening records and
how other countries view the United States and the prospect of
abolishing adoption, the following letters from New Zealand and Mexico
that I received some years ago from prominent adoption activists may be
enlightening:
FROM NEW ZEALAND: "Thanks for your letter. It sounds very familiar to
me what you are going through. I am glad that we have passed that
hurdle here in New Zealand. However, once records are open, it is just
the beginning. I discovered there are always more things to do, (like
working for adoption change altogether--doing away with it would be
lovely). Then there's the whole issue of birth technology and surrogacy
to tackle. We are just starting that, as well as trying to stop
intercountry adoption, etc., etc., etc. So brace yourself. Then there
is all the search and reunion support to do. Like you, I believe this
should be free of charge and our support groups do just that, though
there are a few sharks who are starting to cash in on this."
-Mary Iwanek, Petone, New Zealand
FROM MEXICO: "I'm working with Acapulco and Mexico City TV programs
about child psychology, sociology, false child abuse laws, and have been
teaching anthropology and child psychology at the State
University...With the students at the University, I have put together a
large exposition of murals saying "Adoption and foster care are not the
solution; they are just the escape valve of a capitalist absolutist
repressive system. We worked day and night over a lot of AmFOR's
newsclips, photographic and graphic material. We also wrote about
Sealed Records in the U.S. The public was shocked. Many professionals
came to the exposition, congratulated me and told me that, before, they
didn't know the problem at all.. Dr. M. Johnson Lombardi, Acapulco,
Mexico.
===============================================================
For further information on adoption issues, alternatives and the people
affected,
Chosen Children is being published by Schenkman Books Inc., publishers
of scholarly books; synposis, contents, reviews & publisher info is at
http://www.amfor.net/chosenchildren.html
===============================================================
"People who are willing to sacrifice freedom for security will have
neither."
--Benjamin Franklin
"A child's 'best interests' are not served by special interests."
--Arthur Sorosky, MD, UCLA, 1989
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
* * * * * * * * * **
The OPEN RECORD is available as a public service to all who have
indicated their interest in adoption issues, legislation, petitions,
court cases, events, searching.
>From Jan. 1989 thru Christmas 1998, the photo-print edition of The OPEN
RECORD was distributed free of charge nationwide and in Canada, to
adoption organizations, adoption affected individuals, lawmakers and
agencies. This first electronic issue of The OPEN RECORD. It is now
being distributed worldwide. The OPEN RECORD is purposely NOT
copyrighted, because our words are OF THE PEOPLE, BY THE PEOPLE, FOR THE
PEOPLE. Every issue is catalogued at the Library of Congress, Serial
Record Division, and we encourage you to forward The OPEN RECORD to
others or excerpt items without need of permission. But
please include AmFOR's website address as the source.
The Open Record is available as a public service to all who have indicated their interest in adoption issues, legislation, petitions, court cases, events, searching. From Jan. 1989 thru Christmas 1998, the photo-print edition of THE OPEN RECORD was distributed free of charge nationwide and in Canada, to adoption organizations, adoption affected individuals, lawmakers and agencies. It is now being distributed worldwide. THE OPEN RECORD is purposely NOT copyrighted, because our words are OF THE PEOPLE, BY THE PEOPLE, FOR THE PEOPLE. Every issue is catalogued at the Library of Congress, Serial Record Division, and we encourage you to forward THE OPEN RECORD to others or excerpt items without need of permission. But please include AmFOR's website address as the source.
DIRECTORY of ADOPTION NEWSLETTERS Link Site -
(U.S., Canada, Australia, U.K., Netherlands - Submit yours, free)
http://www.familyhelper.net/ad/adnlu.html
ADOPTION NEWSWIRE
http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/Prairie/6743/oct.html
