Blue-Ribbon Babies and Labors of Love: Race, Class, and Gender in U.S. Adoption Practice

Title Page, Copyright, Dedication

Blue-RiBBon BaBies and laBoRs of love Book Twenty-two Louann Atkins Temple Women & Culture Series Books about women and families, and their changing roles in society Blue-RiBBon BaBies and laBoRs of love Race, Class, and Gender in U.S. Adoption Practice christine ward gailey university of texas press Austin The Louann Atkins Temple Women & Culture Series is supported by Allison, Doug, Taylor, and Andy Bacon; Margaret, Lawrence, Will, John, and Annie Temple; Larry Temple; the Temple-Inland Foundation; and the National Endowment for the Humanities. Copyright © 2010 by the University of Texas Press All rights reserved Printed in the United States of America First edition, 2010 Requests for permission to reproduce material from this work should be sent to: Permissions University of Texas Press P.O. Box 7819 Austin, TX 78713-7819 www.utexas.edu/utpress/about/bpermission.html ♾ The paper used in this book meets the minimum requirements of ansi/niso Z39.48-1992 (r1997) (Permanence of Paper). Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Gailey, Christine Ward, 1950– Blue-ribbon babies and labors of love : race, class, and gender in U.S. adoption practice / Christine Ward Gailey. p. cm. — (Louann Atkins Temple women & culture series ; bk. 22) Includes bibliographical references and index. isBn 978-0-292-72127-2 (cloth : alk. paper) 1. Adoption—United States. 2. Interethnic adoption—United States. 3. Intercountry adoption—United States. 4. Families—United States. 5. Kinship—United States. I. Title. hv875.55.g35 2010 362.73408′0973—dc22 2009031875 For Sarah, who followed the Drinking Gourd with transcendent courage THIS PAGE INTENTIONALLY LEFT BLANK ...