For decades Texas Right to Life has championed adoption as a Pro-Life pregnancy option. Almost everyone has in some way been impacted by the loving choice of adoption in their lives, whether directly or by friends and relatives. However, the journey to adoption is difficult – for all parties involved. A hearing took place yesterdday before the House Human Service Committee addressing some of the challenges that face adoption and foster care in Texas.
The hearing focused on the efficiency and affordability of adoption. State Representative Scott Sanford, a faithful Pro-Life advocate who sits on the Human Services Committee and was active in the hearing, explained:
Adoption can be a beautiful process which gives a child a chance to live, a birth mother peace of mind, and the gift of a new life to a loving family. I hope through today's hearing we can mold Texas to be more supportive of adoption.
As our Pro-Life legislators understand, adoption is a Pro-Life state interest here in Texas and across the country. First, as Texas Right to Life has reiterated for years, Texas women deserve to know and feel confident that adoption is a viable option for them when they find themselves in difficult pregnancy situations. Texas must work to fight the stigma that has been attached to adoption so that it is no longer viewed as a shameful or unrealistic choice. We believe that this knowledge is empowering, that the adoption process on a mother’s end should be lauded, and that adoption should be as accessible as possible.
Furthermore, addressing difficulties that face the adoption process will be a boon to Texas families who are awaiting the opportunity to grow via adoption. Because there is a waiting list for adoptable children in Texas, sometimes adoptive parents have to wait a long time for their opportunity to proceed with an adoption. Our Pro-Life legislators are working to make the adoption process more efficient and affordable, and to present adoption to pregnant women as the loving and courageous choice that it is.
Texas Right to Life supports both positive conversation about adoption and the Human Services Committee’s dedication to addressing long-standing difficulties associated with the foster care system and adoption process.