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WHEREAS, the Child Citizenship Act of 2000 aimed to provide equal treatment under United States law for adopted and biological children by granting citizenship to internationally-born adoptees. However, when the act became law, it did not apply to internationally-born adoptees who were already over the age of 18, those with legal adoptions who entered on visas requiring a secondary re-adoption in the U.S., and those who were adopted legally abroad or in the U.S. by U.S. citizens but entered the U.S. on non-immigrant visas; and,
WHEREAS, as a result, an estimated 49,000 adult legal adoptees of U.S. citizens who were born before February 27, 1982 and raised in the United States are not U.S. citizens, are potentially undocumented, and further subject to possible deportation. These adoptees' parents did not complete necessary processes to finalize their adopted child or children's citizenship, or in many cases, even a green card; and,
WHEREAS, oftentimes, adoptees are surprised to learn that they are not, by definition, citizens of the United States when they apply for government benefits, a passport, or even a job; and,
WHEREAS, several deportations of individuals who were legally adopted from foreign countries have already taken place, breaking up families by separating parents from minor children, adult children from parents, and partners and spouses from one another. Upon return to their birthplaces, these adoptees have no family to support them, do not possess language proficiency, may not have a means to support themselves, and thus, are at risk of homelessness, poverty, and mental health challenges; and,
WHEREAS, adoptees who do not have citizenship have come from countries including Argentina, Brazil, China, Colombia, Costa Rica, Germany, Guatemala, El Salvador, Greece, India, Ireland, Haiti, Iran, Japan, Mexico, Panama, Philippines, Russia, St. Kitts, Taiwan, Ukraine, and Vietnam. There are an estimated 20,000 Korean American adoptees alone who do...
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