Declare July 28 National Adoptee Equal Rights Day

WHEREAS: American citizens who are adopted are denied their civil and human rights in regard to access to their own original birth certificates in most U.S. states ,

WHEREAS: State regulations denying unrestricted access to one's own birth certificate that apply only to a segment of the population, create a lifelong inequality for adoptees, regardless of age, in a way no others are subject to, and are thus discriminatory,

WHEREAS: It is only since the 1940s that outdated, archaic, draconian regulations have been enacted, unjustly sealing and denying equal access by adopted persons to their own original birth certificates,

WHEREAS: This denial of equal civil and human rights was set in motion by regulations that were opposed from the onset by the Child Welfare League of America and were based on no-longer relevant social stigmas on infertility and illegitimate birth status,

WHEREAS: Alaska and Kansas which never enacted these restrictive, discriminatory regulations has experienced no negative consequences to any citizen nor any increase in abortions or decrease in adoptions,

WHEREAS: There is absolutely no evidence to indicate that mothers or fathers relinquishing children for adoption voluntarily or involuntarily were ever given any promise of anonymity from their children, and most are eager to know of the well
being of their adopted-out offspring,

WHEREAS: No such alleged promises could be made because birth certificates are not sealed until, if ever, an adoption occurs and many adoptive parents obtain documents with the names of the relinquishing parent(s).  Many adoptees are able to locate their original parents without access to their birth certificate,

WHEREAS: Attention needs to be brought to this little known violation of civil rights and to the need to repeal state enacted injustices and restore adoptee%u2019s rights,

WHEREAS: July 28, 1868 the 14th Amendment was ratified giving the Federal Government the right to intervene when states and local governments deprive citizens of their rights. This crucial amendment has become the basis for all the Civil Rights legislation in the last 125 years.

Now, therefore, we the undersigned seek to persuade the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, and the President of the United States of America to declare July 28 National Adoptee Equal Rights Day to heighten awareness of this little known civil rights  issue facing adopted citizens and the need to restore their rights by repealing laws that unjustly discriminate against adopted persons.