Statement Against Racism and Hate 2020

Dear Friends of Adoption,

Over the last week, our nation has been brought to its knees in grief at the needless murder of George Floyd by a Minneapolis police officer. Mr. Floyd lost his life while being pinned to the ground by an officer’s knee–he was pleading with the officer to allow him to breathe the entire time. For more than eight minutes, the officer ignored the pleas of a dying man. George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, Christian Cooper and Cornelius Frederick are but a few of the many people of color who have recently brought to light the systemic racism in our country.

Voice for Adoption (VFA) advocates for children in foster care waiting to be adopted and the families who adopt them. There are close to half a million children in the U.S. foster care system, and a disproportionate number are black children or children of color, as well as LGBTQ and two-spirited youth. VFA values the lives of all of America’s children. We value black children. We value black families. We value all of our birth, foster, adopted and kin families, regardless of race, gender, sexual orientation or creed. We are one nation, and today that nation is in mourning.

With the current events of the last week, and the numerous instances of overt and deadly racism, VFA renews our commitment to dismantling racism, and we condemn hate of any kind. We believe that in the wake of COVID-19 and the trail of bodies left behind that now more than ever we have an opportunity to come together as a country like generations before have done. We must start to rebuild our economy, our systems, and our domestic safety nets. As we do so, VFA sends a call to action to every advocacy organization, political leader, person of authority or passerby … we must work toward a country that is safe and provides opportunities and access to all children and families.

At VFA, we will continue to be more intentional in our work to address the disproportionality in our foster care system. We ask that you stand with us as we stand with the moms and dads of these children. Please share this call to action on social media, email, video conferencing and shout it out loud. There is no room in America for racism, and hate will not be tolerated. The unnecessary loss of an innocent man’s life should not be part of our society’s norms.

Black lives matter. We must end the senseless loss of life, and we need to do it now. The future of our nation depends on our ability to combat racism and hate.

With great respect and sadness,

Voice for Adoption