Black mom accused of kidnapping her white adopted son

Adoption can be a complex and overwhelming journey to go through, but can become even more complicated when race gets involved.

This is the case for families that adopt children from different racial groups. But for black parents adopting white children, it gets even more complex.

Keia Jones-Baldwin and Richardro Baldwin are parents to four children, one being a white Foster child, Princeton. Princeton is now 3-year old and has been part of the Baldwin family from birth, but was only adopted when he was two.

She recently recorded an interaction she recently had with a woman who was questioning why she is with her son Princeton. In the conversation, the woman asks “how do you know him? Are you a teacher or something?”

Also Read: How to tell your child that they’re adopted

Sharing their journey on Raising Culture, BBC News shared their story in a short video. Here, Keia shares how she has been accused of kidnapping her son or being her teacher or nanny.

Even African-American parents cannot understand how a black woman can foster a white child.

In South Africa, transracial adoption came into effect after the adoption of the Child Care Act of 1991. This, however, is predominantly black children being placed in white homes.

In one of her papers, Senior Lecturer Diana Breshears cites that “though this family form has increased over the past two decades, very little research has been dedicated to understanding the experiences of these families in South African society.”

This means that there is little or no understanding of the factors at play regarding the placement of white children in black families.

In the video, Keia also advises people on what to do when confronted with judgment or criticism for adopting children from a different racial group.

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