Foster Care and Adoptive Parents in the Latino Community Essay example

The number of children in the foster care system continues to increase. While the foster care system is essential in helping abused, abandoned, and neglected children, many children remain in foster care for long periods of time when family reunification or adoption is planned. Court delays can often extend the time between when children enter the foster care system and when they are placed into permanent homes. Significant differences exist in the quality of care and outcomes for children depending on their race and ethnicity. The percentage of children of color in the foster care system is larger than the percentage of children of color among the general U.S. population. However, the occurrence of child abuse and neglect is at about the same rate in all racial/ethnic groups.

Each year 542,000 children nationwide live temporarily with foster parents, while their own parents struggle to overcome an addiction to alcohol, drugs, illness, financial hardship or other difficulties (Mennen, Brensilver, & Trickett, 2010.) The maltreatment they experienced at home, the shock of being separated from their birth parents, and the uncertainty they face as they enter the foster care system leave many children feeling abandoned or lost. Children have many needs, but while in foster care these needs are not always met. A supportive family environment is created for those children whose parents are not able to take the

The overrepresentation of African American children in the foster care system is a major issue in the United States. African American children only represent about fourteen percent of the child population in the United States, yet represents for thirty percent of the children in the foster care system (Lorthridge, 2011). Ards (2012) stated that African American children are one and a half times more likely to be involved with child protective services and two times more likely to be placed in an out-of-home placement compared to any other race. Being a minority in a country, but the majority in an institution, such as foster care, is a significant problem. Not only is the overrepresentation of African American children a matter of question, but their experience while in foster care is concerning as well. African American children are overrepresented at every aspect in the foster care system and the numbers are not decreasing. According to Anyon (2011), African American children are overrepresented at every stage/decision point in the foster care system. The five stages are known as the five key decision points, which are, report of abuse and/or neglect, referral of report for investigation, reunification, out-of-home placement and termination of parental rights, and exiting the foster care system (Harris, 2008).

When looking at Latino families who are faced with their children being a victim of sexual abuse, it is important to understand their culture and their values. Culture connects people of a same community together, and it gives individuals a unique identity which serves as the foundation for the principles of one’s life. Culture provides individuals with a common interest with one another in their society (Fontes, 2007). When Latinos are faced with their child being sexually

The outlook for children in foster care in the U.S. is cause for alarm (Zetlin, MacLeod, & Kimm, 2012). Foster youth, otherwise known as youth who are ward of the court, are one of the most at risk populations in areas such as physical and emotional health, juvenile delinquencies and educational achievement. This is primarily due to factors such as disruptive a history of abuse, school changes, social stigma and isolation, lack of educational supports, disproportionately high rates of special education services, and exclusionary disciplinary actions (Gallegos & White, 2013). Specific to education, foster youth are twice as likely to be suspended and almost four times as likely to be expelled on a national scale (Courtney, Terao, & Bost, 2004). Additionally, approximately 30-50% of children in care qualify for special education compared with 11.5% children not in foster care (Zetlin, MacLeod, & Kimm, 2012).

One of this disadvantages of foster care, is there is an instability in the system. At times social workers are unaware that the placement of the child was ruled in court for the return of the child to their parents. Another disadvantage is that the transitory environment of the foster placements has been a problematic component in the child welfare system (Crosson-Tower, 2014, p. 316). Some children already experience attachment issues prior to removal from their home. These issues will further advance and creating more problems with the child. Since foster care is a temporary environment for the child, children may adjust to this temporary placement only to be removed and either return home or be placed with another temporary family. These transitions effect the child’s behaviors and emotions. The goal is to provide the child permanency. However, the foster care system is not meant to

Everywhere across the world, more and more children are being placed into foster care or a welfare type system. Foster care can benefit children or harm them; the effects of foster care differ for every individual. These types of systems often have a major effect on young children’s physiological state. Children entering in foster care are often malnourished and have untreated health problems. A high percentage of children who are placed in these types of systems have mental health, physical health, and/or developmental issue which often originates while the individuals are still in the custody of the biological parents. Children in foster care should be provided with a healthy and nurturing environment which often provides positive long term results. The age of children in a foster care varies across the world, but it is often seen that majority of these children are young (George para. 1). There are more young children in the system because younger children require more adequate care than older children that are already in the system. Placing these children in welfare systems is supposed to be a healing process for them. Although this is supposed to be a healing process, statistics say these children have a negative experience while being in these systems, but this is not always the case. A number of children in foster care fall sucker to continuous neglect and recurrent abuse with the lack of nurturing and an unstable environment. These same children often have unmet

Imagine being a child removed from your home in the middle of the night. Waken out of your sleep handed to someone you do not know and being taken to place where all the people around you are strangers. The removal process can be painful, mentally, physically and emotionally to children. The number of losses experienced by a child when they are removed from their home can be countless. Although, there are more White children in the foster care than any other race, research suggests African America children remain in foster care placements for a longer period of time and the chances of reunification with their family is greatly diminished (Knott and Giwa, 2012). The Adoption and Foster Care Analysis and Reporting System (AFCARS) report notes

H. R. 2604 looks to place money back into the federal budget while protecting family unity. According to statistics by Kidsdata (2013), the estimated cost of raising one healthy child in foster care in 2013 for seventeen years was $196,000. In 2013 there were 100,442 Hispanic/Latino children in foster care (Kidsdata.org, 2013). Keeping Latino/Hispanic children out of the foster care system and

In an impeccable world, all children would be loved and nurtured and live in a cozy home with a stable family. Unfortunately, that is not always the case. In the United States “over 400,000 American children are in foster care, taken away when their families are in crisis and can’t take care of them” (“Statistics on Foster Care”). Out of all those children in the foster care system about “114,556 of these children are available for adoption”, which means the biological parents’ rights have been legally terminated through the court system (“Adoption Statistics: National Adoption Month”). That is an immense number of children who end up not being able to have the same bond and love that a biological child would receive from their own parents. The foster care system in Arizona is in crisis, and “government, agencies, organization, and individuals need to collaborate and work together to help the over 17,000 children in need of a loving permanent home” (“Arizona Foster Care System- Child Crisis Center”). Typically, children are placed in foster care as a result of the abuse (physically, emotionally and/or sexually), neglect (pay no attention or too little attention to) or abandonment; on the other hand, the children also enter the system by reason of the behavioral issues or by cause of the biological parent subsequently being incarcerated or ill. Fostering a child can be over and above difficult than having a biological child; however, it is considerably more rewarding when a

One of the most significant studies found in the literature was a qualitative study conducted by Schofiell, Beek, Ward, and Biggart on the role of the foster parent (2013). The purpose of the study was to understand the boundaries of the role of the foster parent on the continuum of carer and parent (Schofield, Beek, Ward, & Biggart, 2013). The study was a portion of a larger study on permanency in foster care (Schofield, Beek, Ward, & Biggart, 2013).

This article sheds light on social and cultural factors and the reasons for controversy about transracial adoption option. The first section describes the demographics of children in the foster care system. Which is followed by the needed requirements for approval as foster and adoptive parents in Massachusetts and information about the laws governing transracial adoption. The race-blind and race-matching positions are explained in order to understand the controversy over transracial adoption. The last section focuses on the growth of multinational population and how it will contribute to transracial adoption. We don’t realize that race shapes peoples’ perception, which needs to be addressed. There needs to be a balance to ensure that the

The article, Family Reunification written by Fred Wulczyn, analyzes data on trends in the child welfare family reunification process. The article reports that most children exit foster care through reunification with their birth parents although reunification currently takes longer than it did in the past and adoptions happen earlier. “For every 100 children admitted to foster care in 1990’s, more exited through reunification than through any other exit type” (Wulczyn, 2004). The article reveals that age of the child at the time of placement and the race of the child has a significant

As the government has not yet managed to establish comprehensive immigration reform, the government must not ignore one of the most distressing problems within the current broken system; which happens to children when their parents or guardians are deported. Currently, at least 6,000 children, children of immigrants, live in foster care because their parents were detained or deported. If the current trend continues, the center estimates that up to 15,000 more children will be taken away from their parents as a result of deportations over the next five years. When a minor enters the foster care system, detained parents often have very little because the hearings and diligences that determine those agreements are carried out very far from the

During the adoption process how does interracial adoption influence the decision of adoptive parents. There was a time where studying these concepts were difficult due to parents inability to tell their children they were adopted. The desire to adopt has increased over time for heterosexual, same-sex couples along with single mothers as well as other countries such as China, Korea and Guatemala have placed large amount of children up for adoption (Biblarz, 2010). Interestingly, China favors heterosexual couples to adopt children from China as oppose to single moms and same-sex couples. To an extent that heterosexual couples can adopt healthy infants whereas single parent and same-sex couple have to adopt from a special needs program (U.S Department of State 2011b). Looking through the adoption dynamics many influences of interracial and cultural adoption includes policies that are discriminate towards the single parent and same-sex couples. The family structure is not even a decision making option for non- heterosexual adoptive parents because of the restrictions that enables same-sex couples and single parent individuals to pursue more options of adopting from a more diverse population of children. According to the findings of Raleigh, white children are in higher demand than non-whites and married heterosexual couples are in higher demand then single parent or same-sex couples, however due to constraints, non- heterosexual and non- married couples are more likely to adopt