Jordan: Pro-Life Conservatives, National Adoption Month and Foster Care

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERANovember is National Adoption Month in America, a time when our nation celebrates and raises awareness about adoption. While all adoption stories are important, the particular focus of this month is the adoption of children currently in foster care.

If you are pro-life, you should also be pro-adoption… as it is a great alternative to abortion. The pro-life community is often seen from the left as only advocating for life in the womb, but not caring for them once they’re born. Many of us know that is hog-wash. Many of us have adopted and are fighting for orphans both here in America and internationally. But conservatives should also be involved in foster care. And in Virginia, there is much work to be done.

According to the Health and Human Services Department, there are about 400,000 children in the American foster care system, of which about 100,000 children are waiting to be adopted because their parents’ rights have been terminated due to neglect or abuse. On average, more than 250,000 children enter the foster care system every year. While more than half of these children will return to their parents, the remainder will stay in the system.  

Here in Virginia, there are about 4,900 kids in the system, of which about 860 are in need of adoptive families, because their parents’ rights have been terminated. There are a wide range of ages of children who are available for adoption – about 50% are 10-years-old or younger.

Many foster children are at risk of falling prey to human traffickers. They are often targeted by traffickers because of their need for love, affirmation, and protection. Studies have shown that between 50 and 80 percent of commercially sexually exploited children in America are, or were formally, involved with the foster care system.

Each year, more than 20,000 children in America ‘age out’ of foster care without being adopted at all. Although there are some that succeed, the outcomes for most of these young people are very bad. One in five will become homeless after age 18. Only 58 percent will graduate high school by age 19; and fewer than 3 percent will earn a college degree by age 25. And 71 percent of young women who ‘age out’ are pregnant by 21 years old. Take a moment and read those startling statistics again.

Abruptly faced with living independently, often with no home foundation or family support to offer security, these young people often flounder. Can you imagine being fully on your own at the age of 18, after experiencing years of insecurity, emotional trauma, and even abuse? A study of teenagers that ‘age out’ of the foster system in Virginia shows that they are twice as likely to use food stamps (SNAP), and three times more likely to use welfare services, like Medicaid or Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), as adults, years after they ‘age out’. The Virginia General Assembly should consider, as dozens of other conservative and moderate states have, raising the foster care ‘age-out’ age to 21 years old to keep them in foster care. This would provide more support for these vulnerable young people, and reduce the risk of them falling into poverty, sex trafficking and crime. Keeping them in foster care increases their chances of graduating, obtaining a good job, and becoming fully self-sufficient. Passing this legislation (Fostering Connections Act) would save the state thousands, maybe millions, of dollars in future welfare and prison spending.

The government manages the foster care system and essentially maintains custody and responsibility of foster children, but there is absolutely no substitute for the role of a family in the well-being of a child and the health of a community. The government doesn’t do many things well, and raising children is definitely one of those things. This principle is driven home to me every time I talk to a foster teen or young adult who has aged out of the foster system. They will tell you that they never outgrow the need for a family. I know adults who have aged out of foster care and, in their late-20’s and 30’s, still long for a family to come home to at Thanksgiving and Christmas.

Don’t let National Adoption Month go by without thinking about the vulnerable children in Virginia’s foster care system, and how it impacts the future of our state. To prevent the negative outcomes associated with aging out of the system, consider helping with family reunification support, foster care, and foster-to-adoption, or supporting local organizations who engage in this work. As pro-life conservatives, we should lead the way in advocating for adoption and foster children.


D.J. Jordan is a member of the Virginia State Board of Social Services and the Vice Chairman of the Prince William County Republican Committee.  Jordan is a resident of Woodbridge, Virginia.

 

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