Thank you, Beth Donovan

She put words to what's been bugging me about the media circus surrounding John Roberts' nomination to the SCOTUS.

Why, in 2005, do members of the MSM feel obligated to refer to the Roberts kids as their "adopted children?" Is adoption still so stigmatized or unusual that we have to make an enormous ruckus about it? I don't get it. It's as if these people still live in some bizarre world where they think that "adopted children" are like aliens. No, people... these are CHILDREN, and they BELONG TO THE ROBERTS FAMILY. They are THEIRS.

I still get the occasional "Do you know who her real mother is?" from people regarding my kids. Because they both are of different ethnic backgrounds than my husband and me, it's a little more obvious that they joined our family via adoption. My response to these people is, "Yep. I look at her in the mirror every single morning."

I am a firm believer in words and phrases that mean what they say. Anyone who knows me knows how important honesty and forthrightness is to me. Cut to the chase, please, and don't say something you don't mean. I hold to that when you're talking about adoption, too... and in that vein, I searched the web for a list of adoption terms that you need to know -- and the words that they are replacing because they aren't accurate.

Birthparent instead of Real parent
Biological parent instead of Natural parent
Birth child instead of Own child
My child instead of Adopted child; Own child
Born to unmarried parents instead of Illegitimate
Terminate parental rights instead of Give up
Make an adoption plan instead of Give away
To parent instead of To keep
Waiting child instead of Adoptable child; Available child
Biological father instead of Begettor
Making contact with instead of Reunion
Parent instead of Adoptive parent
International adoption instead of Foreign adoption
Search instead of Track down parents
Child placed for adoption instead of An unwanted child
Court termination instead of Child taken away
Child with special needs instead of Handicapped child
Was adopted instead of Is adopted

Do you note the subtle difference between the last two terms? One of the refers to a person's current identity ("Is adopted") while the other one simply refers to the circumstances surrounding a person's entry into a family ("Was adopted"). This is a huge distinction. I don't want my children to grow up with the notion that the way they joined our family defines them forever.

UPDATE: Michelle Malkin's mad about this, too... and so are a whole bunch of her readers.