The opening day of the Exhibit Hall was an exhausting, inspiring and amazing success.
The Adoptee Rights Coalition booth staff was swamped and hardly had time to tweet or provide any updates at all, as legislators and representatives from other organizations kept them jumping from the time the doors opened. Day 1 saw hundreds of names collected for our database, and an ongoing stream of legislators who were very interested in our mission. Many remembered us from the demonstration the day before, and the evening and morning news videos of our rally.
The majority of legislators asked intelligent, thoughtful questions, and were surprised to learn that birth certificates are not sealed at the time of surrender, but rather at the time an adoption is finalized. Our photocopies of the adoption decrees provided to many Baby Scoop Era adoptive parents showing the identifying information of surrendering mothers was a bright light of truth shed on the urban legend of “birthmother confidentiality”.
In addition to our educational materials (and of course, our Adoptee Rights Chocolates!), hundreds of AdopteeC.A.R.E. t-shirts were given thanks again to Paula Benoit, and it gives us great satisfaction to know that across the country people will be wearing shirts that proclaim — Original Identity is a Basic Human Right.
The booth continues for the next two days, and there is much work to continue after the Legislative Summit has ended. We will be busy not only collecting and sharing media of our time in Louisville, but following up with the legislators and interested parties who left the exhibit hall today knowing more about adoption than when they arrived. Thank you to everyone staying in Louisville, and everyone who helped make this convention possible. Our important work continues.
Tags: a day for adoptee rights · adoptee rights · Adoptee Rights Demonstration · Adoptee Rights Protest · Adoption · adoption records · Louisville · National Conference of State Legislatures · NCSL1 Comment
Thank you for all you do!