This month, I’m holding space for our fellow adoptees - in particular transracial, intercountry, and all adoptees who immigrated to the US - who are navigating fear, confusion, and exhaustion in response to the current political climate.
In a recent adoptee affinity space, I shared something I’ve been carrying quietly: I’m having a hard time keeping up with the news. I feel torn - if I don’t stay informed, how can I make wise decisions about my safety as a Latina woman whose U.S. passport says “Colombia” as my place of birth? And yet, staying too informed drains me, overwhelms me, and makes me feel like I’m drowning in worry.
I’m grateful for the community around me - especially the two non-adopted people in my life who check in with me daily. When I share that I’m headed somewhere that might not be safe for a Brown Latina woman, they ask: Are you sure you need to go? Do you have my number written down in case your phone dies? If ICE stops you, here’s what you do. Their care moves me to tears. I feel seen—not just as an adoptee, but as a person of color living in a country that sometimes feels unsure about whether I belong.
I hope every adoptee has people like this in their life. And if you are not an adoptee, I hope you are striving to be this person for someone in your life.
In that spirit, I want to invite all of our adoptee community to our upcoming Adoptee Wellness Chat, a virtual gathering where we can reflect and process recent political shifts. It’s a space to be real, to recharge, and to share what’s on our hearts. We are also hosting an in person Adoptee Dessert Social on July 26th. All Adult Adoptees are welcome to both!
So many of us spend our lives trying to fit into families or places not built with us in mind. We live with that both/and—fitting in everywhere and nowhere. Lately, I’ve been returning to this line from an NPR special featuring adoptees: “Our homeland is each other.”
And right now, I’m holding on tightly to that truth.
