A good portion of my family is adopted, including two of my siblings. Their lives have changed for the better because of the love, care and feeling of safety and security that they now have.  My family’s race, national origin, ethnicity, gender, age, religion, political beliefs, sexual orientation, disability and family status had nothing to do with our ability to provide that for them.

Virginia ranks first in the percentage of youth that age out of the system, and the commonwealth admits that one of the reasons is a lack of parents who are ready to adopt.  People who are ready and willing to provide a home for a child in need should not be turned away because of discrimination, which is why I agree that:

The best interests of the child should be the sole factor in deciding whether a child should be placed with a prospective foster care or adoptive parent or parents.

State-licensed child placing agencies should not be allowed to discriminate against children or prospective parents based on race, national origin, ethnicity, gender, age, religion, political beliefs, sexual orientation, disability and family status.

The State Board of Social Services should restore to the final rules the protections against such discrimination included in the proposed rules.