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 One
reality which holds true most often is that things change
over time. This is certainly true in the field of adoption.
Adoption practices and attitudes have changed, especially
over the past 30 years. As change has come to adoption, we
better understand the importance of adoption language. This
needs to keep up with contemporary concepts. We all know
that language conveys both obvious and subtle messages. We
also know that some words and phrases are not only outdated,
they can
 also be viewed as being negative and inappropriate
and conveying
messages that are not accurate.
Positive adoption language is a concept to encourage
favorable, sensitive, positive and non-judgmental
perspectives toward adoption. Positive adoption language is
a vocabulary relating to adoption which reflects the highest
respect and dignity for those involved in adoption.
Some Examples
Sometimes we hear people describe the placing of a child for
adoption as “giving up a child” and “giving away a child”.
That can convey messages that birth parents are
irresponsible, don’t care and that the decision for adoption
is not well thought out. That is why we like to use the term
“making an adoption plan” instead.
We often hear people refer to birth parents as being the
“real” parent or the “natural” parent. This can convey that
adoptive parents are somehow not “real” or “natural” and
devalues them as if they are artificial. That is why we use
the term “birth parents.”
Sometimes we hear people refer to a child born out of
wedlock as an “illegitimate” child or an “unwanted” child.
We believe all children are legitimate and wanted. We don’t
like those terms being used.
Again, these examples highlight the need to be sensitive
about the language we use to ensure we speak positively and
non-judgmentally about adoption.
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