Why Ethiopia?

“Why not an American kid?”
Families who choose to adopt internationally get this type of question lots. I always encourage people to adopt where they personally see the most need. I am so glad for the sake of the children that people are drawn to different countries. There are more than enough needy kids to go around.

But one of the reasons my heart is so firmly in Ethiopia, is the sheer heart-wrenching need there. Kids just have it so much tougher over there. Here is an exceprt from Melissa Fay Greene’s New York Times article from December, 2002:

Behind corrugated iron walls off a dirt road, schoolgirls in donated clothing are throwing pebbles and waggling their long legs out behind them in hopscotch. Other girls sit on kitchen chairs in the shade of a cement wall, braiding and rebraiding one another’s hair. They weave in plastic beads in arrangements so tight that the completed hairdo looks like an abacus. Boys lope back and forth with a half-deflated soccer ball.

Virtually all of these children have lost both parents, most to AIDS. Malaria, yellow fever and especially TB are fatal illnesses here, too. The children’s grandparents have also died or are too poor and sick to care for the children; the same is true of their aunts and uncles, their neighbors and teachers. But no single one of these children has been isolated by tragedy: being orphaned is one of the common experiences of their generation.

To read the rest of her article, please click here. If you are remotely interested in Ethiopian adoption, this is a don’t-miss story. Also don’t miss this recent post on Erin’s transracial adoption blog. The need in Ethiopia is staggering. And we can make a difference.

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