Children for Sale

Talk of adoption has run rampant in today's news. It seems that every time I pick up a magazine or turn on E! News, a celebrity is being featured for adopting a child.

Stars like Angelina Jolie, Brad Pitt, Tom Cruise,George Lucas, Hugh Jackman, Madonna, and most recently, Grey's Anatomy star Katherine Heigel, have taken up the trend of adopting children from different parts of the world.

But why do most celebrities feel the need to adopt from overseas when there are perfectly good children of all races, right here in our own county?

There are several advantags and disadvantages to adopting children from other countries. One, he cost of adoption in the United States would range from $15,000 to about $2,500. Adopting outside the U.S would range from $5,000 to $27,000.

Secondly, the wait for adopting outside one's own country and filling out paperwork alone is more time consuming and tedious than most of the process itself. Statistics show that it takes up to 18 months to adopt just one child. No matter the country.

Now, I am not saying anything against adoption or adoption outside of the U.S.

In fact, I myself am adopted and it is something I feel very strongly about and plan on doing when I am ready to have kids. That is why I do not understand why celebs and some "

Average Joe" families feel the need to adopt outside of the country.

Children everywhere need love and care.

They need families who will feed them and educate them. How are children here in the U.S going to get that if families keep on adopting from other cultures?

If I weren't fortunate enough to be adopted by family members, I wonder where I would have ended up. Would I have been in some podunk town, in a broke down orphanage, waiting for someone to come and love me? If adults keep on adopting from other countries, how do the children in the U.S have a chance of being a part of a "real" family?

Another one of the issues I noticed about adoption is the fact that most couples, especially the ones who have trouble reproducing children, tend to want to adopt babies or children under the ages of three to five years

According to the Child Welfare League of America, the average age of adoption is seven years old.

Come on folks, big kids need love too.

Everyone has heard of the little orphan ,"Annie", whose only goal in life is to be adopted. This movie is like a dream for orphans everywhere.

There have been several ,motion picture movies like, "A Little Princess" and "Like Mike" that have tried to bring to attention the matter of adopting and the importance of people being aware that "orphans" exist. It does not matter(or should not matter, in that case) if one is rich and famous or poor and average. What matters is that children with no one , are able to find a nuturing family who will raise them to be healthy, educated adults and to make sure that they grow up to be good people.

So, I guess it really doesn't matter if kids, young and old, are adopted from othr countries. America is after all a "melting pot". Culture should be accepted anywhere. As long as children are finding homesand are able to be raised in safe living enviornments.

I hope that the more this country progresses, adoption will become more frequent among everyday civilians and not just left up to celebrities.

Although, I would like the see "Brangelina" adopt someone in their teens or a chilld from the U.S.

Just sayin!

-Kiersten W.