Month: April 2017

Some KAD reunion films to keep on the radar

April 30, 2017
by mike m
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history / stories

Just some historical KAD films to keep on the radar, with some relevant links for each. Toby Dawson – Lost and Found (2011).  Documents Toby’s reunion with birth father, facilitated by his olympic medal media exposure. http://jalbertfilm.com/index.php/video/toby-dawson-lost-found/ http://jalbertfilm.com/index.php/video/segment-from-toby-dawson-lost-and-found-mother/ http://jalbertfilm.com/index.php/video/segment-from-toby-dawson-lost-found/ Nathan Adolfson – Passing Through (1998).  Must be one of the first professional films about reunion, Nathan eventually found his 3 siblings.  There is an interesting ending to the story that i am wondering how and […]

Is Marissa Brandt the first adoptee to compete representing Korea?

April 29, 2017
by mike m
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news

A couple other adoptees are hoping to represent Korea in the 2020 summer Olympics, but are there any before Marissa Brandt?  She is already competing on the national team and is expected to be in the Olympics. Brandt, 24, was adopted by a family in Minnesota when she was four months old… and now finds herself playing for South Korea less than one year from the PyeongChang Winter Olympics here. She hopes to find her birth […]

Being the Korean side of the family

April 26, 2017
by mike m
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stories

Posted with permission of the author, this was a profound expression of the complexities of race as a KAD parent.  It can be difficult to feel like an “authentic” korean, and then it becomes even more challenging because parents often want to pass on their heritage to their kids.  (The heritage of one’s adoptive parents can feel even more foreign.)  It is left up to the KAD to bear that burden which they may be […]

Coming out racially

April 2, 2017
by mike m
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commentary

There are even adoptive families that don’t survive the adoptee coming out racially, so it is sad but not surprising that couples and other relationships also experience tremendous pressure.  One story: When I met my girlfriend, who is also white, we were both coming out and helped one another accept and understand our sexuality, which really brought us together. Now I’m coming out racially—as a woman of color. … I don’t mean to blame my […]