In 1975, the U.S. government airlifted nearly 3,000 displaced children out of wartime Vietnam during Operation Babylift. The operation had the best intentions but also had negative consequences. In 1989, Vietnamese American child Cu Teo was adopted by his adoptive parents Tran Van Bao and Tran Thi Hang. In the past decade, the adoption of foreign-born children, most of them Asian, has grown significantly.
In January 1975, 7-year-old Mark Slavik was adopted from Saigon by a family in the U.S. Years later, he began a search for a Vietnamese American. Many adoptive parents keep their child’s original name as a middle name and give them a new American first name. However, some argue against changing the name of their adopted child due to lack of information.
The law allows adoptive parents to change their adopted children’s names, but it is important to note that state statutes which establish and protect the privilege of adoption permit adoption of foreign-born children by United States citizens. Adoptions from Vietnam to the United States can be processed for all eligible children under the Hague Adoption Convention and the respective laws.
While there is no guarantee that every adoptive family wants to change their child’s name, legally, the adoptive family has the right to do so. This is particularly true for Vietnamese American children who have not yet reached U.S. citizenship status.
📹 On the Search for Army Vet’s Long-Lost Twin Kids: Part 2
Pam Slaton tries to track down Allen Thomas’ son and daughter, who he last saw in South Korea.
Can Americans adopt from Vietnam?
All intercountry adoptions from Vietnam must be processed by Holt International Children’s Services and Alliance for Children, the two authorized U. S. adoption service providers.
Can you change the name of an adopted child?
Adopting an older child can provide a better future for both the adoptive family and the child. Legally, adoptive families have the right to change the child’s name, although not all adoptive families want to do so. This guide will discuss the rights of adoptive parents in renaming a child, the reasons behind some parents choosing to do so, and more. If you have any questions about changing the child’s name, you can contact a specialist at 1-800-ADOPTION or fill out a free info form. The agency offers services for children aged 4 or younger.
What are the Vietnamese adoption rules?
In order to be eligible to adopt a child from Vietnam, married heterosexual couples and single women between the ages of 25 and 55 with no more than four children already residing in their household are required to meet the following criteria. The age difference between the adoptive parent(s) and the child(ren) must be at least 20 years.
Do parents name their adopted child?
Adoptions are a highly variable phenomenon. While the adoptive parents are typically the ultimate arbiters of the child’s nomenclature, prospective adoptive parents may also exert a considerable influence in this regard. The prospective adoptive parents may choose to give the child a special name prior to the adoption proceeding, or they may select a name together with the child’s birth parents. This shared experience provides an excellent opportunity for both parties to gain a deeper understanding of the adoption process.
What happens to orphans in Vietnam?
Poverty is a significant contributing factor to the prevalence of child labor, particularly among orphaned and abandoned children, who are at an elevated risk of becoming victims of human trafficking. This phenomenon is particularly prevalent among ethnic minorities, such as the Hmong, who are frequently trafficked within or across national borders.
What is the Vietnamese adoption scandal?
The US State Department faced corruption allegations in Vietnam during the late 1990s and early 2000s, with thousands of Vietnamese-born children being adopted annually. The Vietnam government tried to reform its adoption system, but the US banned them entirely and prosecuted and deported some suspected perpetrators. In 2005, the US signed a three-year bilateral agreement with Vietnam, ensuring corruption protections.
However, as adoptions resumed, the US Embassy in Hanoi noticed an increase in “abandoned” infants in orphanages with contracts with international adoption agencies. These abandonments were deemed shams designed to obscure the child’s true origins.
The US had only three imprecise tools to respond to suspicions about Vietnamese adoptions: investigating the circumstances behind Americans’ applications for “orphan visas”, pressureping Vietnam to live up to the 2005 Memorandum of Agreement, and stopping accepting adoptions from Vietnam entirely. However, these tools were time-consuming and elicited objections from the Vietnamese government. The US also hesitated to wield this blunt tool, as it would stop legal adoptions alongside corrupt ones.
Do adopted kids call their parents mom and dad?
Open adoption allows adoptees to choose how they address their birth parents, fostering open conversations and expressing their feelings and preferences. Some use terms like “birth mom” or “birth dad” to maintain connection, while others use “first mom” or “first dad” to emphasize the special place birth parents hold in their lives. This principle is rooted in respect, inclusivity, and understanding. Adopted siblings are also referred to as adoptees, and their bond is a crucial aspect of open adoption.
Why is adoption in Vietnam banned?
Washington banned American adoption of Vietnamese children in 2008 due to allegations of baby sales in the Southeast Asian nation. This has led to a 69 drop in US adoptions since 2004. Orphan Impact founder Tad Kincaid believes that both countries understand the benefits of adoption for orphans. The new agreement will only allow two licensed adoption agencies to operate in Vietnam, a decrease from over 40 agencies before the ban. Vietnam has no foster-care system and domestic adoptions are not common.
Why were so many Koreans given up for adoption?
The international adoption of South Korean children began in 1953 to address mixed children orphaned during and after the Korean War. It evolved to include orphaned Korean children and was supported by religious organizations in the US, Australia, and Western Europe. From the 1970s to the 2000s, thousands of children were adopted overseas. However, the South Korean government has shifted focus to domestic adoptions.
In 2023, 79 children were sent overseas, making it the longest-running international adoption program globally. Less than one percent of Korean adoptees are Amerasian, but most were Amerasians fathered by American soldiers during the decade after the Korean War.
What to call adoptive parents?
In most cultures, the adoption of a child does not alter the identities of the mother and father, who are referred to as “guardians”, “foster”, or “adoptive” parents. Some people use “honest adoption language” (HAL) to reflect the original terminology and to accurately reflect the hidden realities of adoption. However, HAL is against the use of other language used in adoption, as it implies dishonesty and does not honor the historical aspects of the early adoption reform movement. Some adoptive parents feel disrespected by language like “natural parent” as it may indicate their unnaturality.
What is the 3 child policy in Vietnam?
In 1989, the Council of Ministers issued a directive requiring families with more than two children to pay supplementary fees for housing, education, and healthcare for their third child. This policy imposed tangible financial burdens on families, potentially leading to a decline in fertility rates.
📹 the most racist person in usa 😭
I was stationed in South Korea in 1966-1969. There is no excuse for him to have left the children and abandoned the mother. As a soldier he could have gotten a free “Military Hop” on a US Air Force aircraft at any time to get back to S. Korea, I did this in each direction three times during my stint in the US Army between 1965 and 1972. Each time I went to a local Air Force Base and signed up for a hop on standby and flew into Seoul on leave for thirty days. At the end of my leave I went to Kimpo AFB and hopped back to the states. Don’t blame the wife she was young and fearful but brave to send those kids to the states, at that time mixed kids like that were outcasts in Korean society and often mistreated by EVERYONE! They should be thankful that their mother loved them enough to give them up for a better life here!
This story reminds me when in the late 80″s…I used to get my nails done in Santa Ana,Ca. And all the staff there were Vietnamese. Well,…long story short…I met this one young lady…she must of been 34…she looked to be mixed with caucasian. ..so I one day asked her if one of her parents were caucasian. And she said that her father was. …, but that she didnt renember him because he had left Vietnam and he was currently back in the U.S. She even told me the State where he lived at. Her mother had gave her that info. So….I asked if she would visit him one day…and she said yes…but she had to first prepare herself more…Meaning she was going to school to better her English. My heart sank when she thought she wasn’t good enough. As she also mentioned that she was saving some money to buy better clothing for her to visit her father. She was so pretty…with her short light ash colored hair…and her light green eyes. Till this day I still wonder if she ever got to meet him 😢
Why did he not go back to get her & the kids. He also abandoned her son that he had adopted. I feel so sorry for the mother & all 3 children. Heartbreak all around. Thank goodness the older brother & his wife were good people.They can enjoy being siblings & have more love & family in their lives 🙏🏼💕🤗
To the people saying the mother was a gold-digger, the half-brother explained she was not. She gave her children up for adoption because South Korea was still a developing country that was VERY poor. America, however, was the “land of opportunity” and arguably the best country in the world back then. Furthermore, the half-brother said her mother would constantly cry because she regret her decision of giving them up for adoption. She would also tell her neighbours that if they ever see Korean-American twins to notify her. Finally, she saved all the money that Allen Thomas sent to her from mail and saved all the letters from America. When she passed away, she said that she still regrests not seeing them again. This is all explained in Part 5 of the article.
the stigma of being a single mother in S Korea alone is enough to drive a mother to put up her child for adoption much less having multiple children being of mixed race. I really feel for the mother, i hope she was able to find some peace and not be too critical of herself and the decisions she felt she had to make back then. And i hope the twins can also find peace in themselves and with their mother.
The guy made the Korean lady sound like some gold digger that only married him for money but if you look at part 5 she was saving all the bonds he was sending her and kept all of his letters and photos even after giving kids away. She wished one day her kids would find her because there was no way a single mom would be able to raise 3 kids on her own in S. Korea. If her first child was an American, I’m sure she would have decided to send him for adoption as well. The guy basically went deadbeat and she thought he found a new girl at Vietnam. You have to understand, South Korea after Korean War was one of the poorest nations in the world. It took time for the nation to get to where it is today. She probably thought the kids were better off going to America and get loved and educated by an American family instead of living with her in poverty. Single mom with 3 kids didn’t really have much options in 70’s S. Korea.. My grandpa worked at Camp Humphreys and he saw a lot of so called “yang-saekshi”which translates to American wives (Korean women who are girlfriends to an Ameican soldiers). Don’t get me wrong, there are people who raised the kids by themselves and kids turned out well but mixed kids who lacked father figure just had hell. I remember up until late 90’s when you were mixed and you didn’t have your foreign parent figure around (usually fathers), people viewed you as “oh his dad was a soldier who lied to a Korean girl and just enjoyed her and left her when his time was done.
This man was disgraceful saying he left connie but every time he spoke with her she just asked for money thats because he abandoned his children how can she clothe and feed them when he just turned his back on them and didnt help support them and connie even begs him to take the children to america as they are american citizens but he refuses, yer he really cared (NOT) then he cries crockadile tears saying he wants them now they are adults, american soldiers did this alot and as they said connie would have had no help from her family for the mixed race twins thats why she asked him for help like he said many times she asked for money, who else is going to feed his kids, what a clown what a loser to abandon his children knowing connies family have turned their back on her for having mixed race kids, this man is something els👎🏼
I am a Korean adoptee from South Korea. My 3 sisters and I were adopted to a couple in America. Once we started have children of our own (marrying American men), our children were Amerasian. We learned that many Korean women had children from GI men stationed there. Since it was a disgrace, many abandoned these children.
As an adopted child who found her birthmother and gave her the gift of unconditional love, I am astounded by the huge array of negative, judgmental lashings so many have given this man. Life is not about hate- especially of those we do not know. He is their birth father, period. If he wishes to find his children and offer them love despite the past, then he has that right. Some of you think he is an underserving, horrible person without even knowing all the facts. You did not live his life; he and only he has. Regardless of the past’s true facts, only one thing matters… the human spirit is shroud in eternal love, and when its light shines, that is what is known as “grace.” The past is merely a wake we leave behind- all that matters is each present moment. Love on sir! And for those of you who have chosen to judge him and cast your wrath, please try to focus your days on the kindness heart.
These two kids were not even grateful to their heartbroken mother, instead feel bitter and hateful towards her, and believe the father’s words. Really fucked up, heartless,after having a good life in America. Never had they thought abt going back Korea and see her. They can find her if they wanted to. I only believe HALF what the father said. They should go meet their brother in Korea who had spend the childhood with them, listen to what he have to say. He will nvr make up stories, only speak what he know abt. Many years the American father did not come back, therefore the mom suspect he had a new Girlfriend in Vietnam. Living those tough times 40/50years ago, going to America (unlike now where going there is no big deal), was considered very lucky and privileged. Getting out of poverty, have a better life and education,all this led to a Mother’s willingness to sacrifice losing her children, and had to endure the pain and heartbreak for the rest of her life. Sorry for the Korean brother too, he was adopted by this American father but was forgotten. He must really feel bitter when he heard this father is looking for his siblings. At least he is doing alright now, after he and his mom struggling for so many years. I’m glad Korea is prosper now even though I’m not Korean.
Two of my brothers were adopted from South Korea in the early 50’s through the Holt MIssionary Center. Before my brother passed, he made the trip back to Korea and the Holt Adoption Center. She’s right, my brother was whipped on his back that he carried with him all his life. Mixed race was not liked
Like, what kind of mindset is that? He expected the mom to raise his children without him contributing for anything and waited until they are already adults so that they could not ask him for anything? What was the point of his search? To see if they grew up to look like him and then continue on with his life? How shameless can a person be…
You’d think that the military would have an organization to bridge the gap & save time & help provide help in locating relatives & help the mothers with the children instead of just walking away. Soldiers shouldn’t be allowed off base “for a little fun” when the result of children affects the lives of these women $ the children so cruely. Yes, we’re all human & wars & unclaimed children have always been a fact, but haven’t we evolved enough to promote solid plans of actions for prevention and/or support of jeopardized humans?
I worked over 20 years for a retired Army Sergeant who met a lady while in Korea and when he got her preg, and when he came back to states he made sure he brought her and their child back, but he first had to get a divorce from his american wife. And then him and the woman he met in korea got married had a son in 1069. He also had a daughter in 67 who’s mother was Thi (she was sent over here to her dad when she was 4 years old, his Korean wife and his ex wife helped raise her, she never got to see her mother after being sent here, her dad was told her mother had passed which is why she was sent over here to him, but when the girl was in her 30’s she found out her mother was still alive, only thing was, the girl herself passed at age of 45 from a blood clot, and never got to meet her mom or even see a picture of her) and 10 years after son was born him and his Korean wife had a daughter. They were married up until he passed away 2015. I don’t know but think the reason he was able to bring them over here was because he was a Sergeant. Where many other guys who loved someone over there and had children were just G.I’s and weren’t’ so lucky. And many did want to find their children and their wives, but again wasn’t lucky.
Ms. Pam Slaton, kindly do a favor for my mother; she is a daughter of a world war II soldier named, I guess, Homer Fleetwood; her daughther was named Renata Fleetwood – named after her father’s sister. He attempted to get her at the age of mid twenties, but she could not leave her little kids then, so she stayed here in the Philippines until she totally lost contact with him and his family in the United States of America. My mother is 73 years old now, and she wants nothing than to know her family in the US, and for them to know her family as well before she finally rests. We tried seeking them but to no avail, for it’s tough to get access with war vet informations much less knowing which agencies keeping and where to find them, let alone the distance separating us. I hope you could help us locate them through your knack, passion, and ingenuity of searching people out there. We highly appreciate and be forever grateful for your effort. God bless and more power.
I feel kind of bad for this old, vet dude for obvious reasons. But, when one examines this situation closer, it makes no real sense why he didn’t support his 3 legal kids, let alone his two bilogical ones, when he had the opportunity to do so. Why then bring kids to this life and adopt a third one when you have no plans to be there for them emotionnally, physically, or economically? If he doesn’t have money, then why not enlist another family member to help him out? I’m sure his parents could have stepped in for this man, for example, until something could have been figured out. Keep in mind that I also grew up without my old man, so I’m familiar with type of situation. My biological father didn’t take care of his paternal obligations, but years later when I looked him up in order to know my roots, he magically wanted to form a relationship, nah, screw that; I just wanted to meet the guy and my half siblings–nothing else. However, please note that his parents at the time when I was a baby, did want to take me in and raise me when he defaulted on his paternal responsibility, but my mother chose to keep me. I would have been happy either way. Everyone just needs to feel like they belong, and that they are wanted and loved.
Normally alots of soldiers will just seed all over the world they based and leaved their naive girlfriends waiting for their lovers to return. Never at one time even thought these guy might just want to have a girlfriend with no intention of marrying them. Maybe some some are sincere, but they should know the hardships their girlfriend and children will face. After near dying they now wished to see their children. That is selfish. If you guys really love your girlfriends and children. (They might be shifted) . You can also keep in touch or sent a forward address. Even if you shifted house you can also informed the post office. Why is the links broken?
I wonder how people can have kids with different partners, having many ‘families’ in their lives. I don’t have kids but I just can’t imagine myself having kids and not living with them, not seeing they growing up and then, marrying again and having more kids and if the divorce comes, marrying once again and having more kids. WTF! If people are so selfish to put kids in this world just for the pleasure of making them or to call them ‘mine’, I rather be alone forever.
The dad is a joke tbh. He could have worked hard and traveled back to Korea to find his kids. I would have never stopped but what did he do? He got married and got more kids. A family will deplete your savings, of course he didn’t have the money to keep looking for his Korean children 😒. It’s so easy to put yourself first right? Your own desires and wishes first. You like a woman, you marry her and feel better having a family life, you have sex and have new children and have someone to come home to but he didn’t think that maybe his kids weren’t enjoying the same family life and happiness. I think that is selfish. I would put my children first, looked for the mother and assure her that I would take care of those children.
Don’t you hate on Youtube where you get part of a story and spend hours perusal bits and pieces trying to see the ending? Well, I couldn’t give up, kept getting the beginning but couldn’t see the happy reunion. HERE IS THE LINK, YOU WILL SEE THE BEGINNING, MIDDLE AGAIN, BUT YOU CAN FINALLY SEE THESE CHILDREN WITH THEIR ARMS AROUND THEIR FATHER: GET OUT THE TISSUE, iT WAS WORTH SEARCHING FOR THE FINAL article: youtube.com/watch?v=vcRalUkNJes
Home DNA kits have changed the world. Secrets are coming to light. You cannot judge what a solider OR civilian did to get through a horrible, bloody, war. You haven’t walked in their shoes. These children & mothers were shunned many times, by their families & entire community. They lived in oppressive poverty. War children have been left behind after every conflict since the beginning of time.
The military (US) didn’t allow soldiers to bring home their kids nor to adopt them. (Military brat I knew about cases like this) M.A.S.H. even made a point of this as did a certain TV movie in the 1980’s about a dad who wanted to bring his daughter back if his ex didn’t want to leave. Military rules do not recognised offspring of their soldiers unless the spouse is a US citizen…
I see this is an old story, but PLEASE, @ABC News, the parts of your story cannot be followed even in your own article website because you changed titles from one part to the next. What’s the use of putting down Part 1 or 2 when first, the titles are different in each, and you do not indicate how many parts there are?? This is good journalism?
What we forget is that the twins were adopted. Meaning, they have parents who have raised them, loved them, etc. People are so comsumed by blood reunions. Adoption is a process to make the child your own child. One the paper process is completed, the child is yours. Not ownership, to love with all you have.
Soldiers who become father at that time it was pure inresponable. Condoms where available, and they have their choice. They need the women there, but some of them turn their backs when they’re gone to those children’s. So sad like this are hundreds of story’s. Be ashamed who ever fits their role in this story’s.😥😥😥
Ya’ll need to stop being so rude, a lot of times back then GI Soliders weren’t allowed to be with their mixed race kids especially because of the wars going on countries at war and a lot of times GI Soliders didn’t have any rights in those countries to be with their wives/girlfirends/whatever and their kids they were looked at badly and weren’t really treated well.
Why the Korean lady got married to an American, if having mixed children was unacceptable in Korea!!! One of my classmates fell in love with an American solider in Iraq. At first, she was like having fun but after that her family found out and they left the city because loving or marrying non-Iraqi man is culturally unacceptable. Why women keep on doing things that might hurt children like this story or affect their family and put the guy through hardship!! This is crazy.
Excuse me, when you are in the army you go where (they) tell you to go, period no questions asked. Where’s did this ditched kids thing come from? He took on a dangerous job trying to get back………As far as mentioning the asking for money, which obviously he had no problem with, he probably wanted some response from her other than material
Who pays this researcher for all her work? Does she work for free? Does she charge the people for her help? And if not, how then does she support herself? How is it she gets access to these records and DNA information? Can we all access this? Is it a public database? How did she even get started doing this type of work? Is she a genealogist? So many questions will little to no answers! I suspect that the government was mapping the human genome and continues to do so to this day! Guard your DNA like you would a precious metal! Very suspicious indeed!
I mispoke in earlier comment re “self-aggrandizing researcher” (re this disgusting absence of info regarding “why DID this father abandon his family?”), it should have read “self- aggrandizing NETWORK” as surely it’s the network that figured on a titlalating story (viewers/$-making the ONLY REAL interest) withOUT regard for morality, REAL moral concern.