In White America

Interracial Children and Adoption

Jessica Keebler, director of the Los Angeles County Bureau of Adoptions in 1955, faces an almost insurmountable crisis. Theres a logjam of unadoptable babies and a severe lack of adequate foster homes for these children. The crux of this issues rests with a statute in Californias adoption law stating ... an interracial child is a non-white and may be given only to a Negro family. Since Negro family applications to adopt are as rare as rain in the Mojave desert, the backlog of interracial babies threatens the structure of Keeblers department and her mental health. When Paul and Anne Barlin, a white family, say they will adopt a child of any color, any national origin, Keebler believes she may have found a way to resolve this backlog of babies. To make this unusual adoption a reality, she must have the courage to flaunt the law or stand up to the state legislature and ask them to repeal the law. Her actions will determine if one at-risk child will be placed in a loving home. This one case has the potential to change the landscape of adoption forever.