It’s that time again!
The Third Annual Demons in Adoption Awards ballot is now online.
This is your opportunity, as one bludgeoned by adoption, to vote for your favorite adopta thief, babyseller, flim-flamist, money launderer, or bunco artist, all from the comfort of your own home or office.
We are disappointed that CARE founder Jean Stauss didn’t make the final cut. We noted with amusement earlier this year that some anonymous bastard (not yours truly) nominated the rights-down-the-river seller and all-around Benedict Bastard for this prestigious honor. We were looking forward to the opportunity to vote for Strauss, the American Adoption Congress’ 2009 Emma Vilardi Humanitarian Award. Funny, how one organization’s humanitarian is another organization’s demon.
Still, we have so many good choices left that we shall have to pray about it before we hit the key. It’s a tuffy!
Here’s the official press release from Pound Pup, sponsor of the awards:
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
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Each year Pound Pup Legacy presents the Demons of Adoption Award to raise a voice against adoption propaganda and the self congratulatory practices of the Congressional Coalition on Adoption Institute’s annual Angels in Adoption Awards (TM)
Until October 30 you will have the opportunity to vote for the recipient of this year’s award.
The nominees are:
* Adoptions First for offering of a free birth mothers package;
* Athanasios Kollias aka Teo for the involvement in various Guatemalan child trafficking cases;
* Barnardos for promoting the removal of children and have them adopted as the solution to family breakdown;
* Bethany Christian Services for using coercive tactics obtaining infants for their customers;
* Deborra Lee-Furness for pushing laxer regulations in inter-country adoption;
* Harry and Bertha Holt for starting the placement of “special needs children” who are truly not adoptable, into the homes of already huge families;
* Independent Adoption Center for plugging their business on WE tv’s Adoption Diaries, making them the non-denominational Bethany;
* Joint Council on International Children’s Services for supporting temporary movement of foreign children to America because such trial-basis “exchange” programs “help” the adoption process;
* LDS Family Services for using coercive tactics in obtaining infants for adoption and for not respecting paternal rights;
* Scott and Karen Banks for child trafficking, coercive adoption practices and the abandonment of their adopted children;
* The Dutch Ministry of Justice for preventing research into corrupt adoption practices in China, because of diplomatic and business relations with that country;
* The Malawi Government for allowing Madonna to adopt Mercy James.
Go here to vote.
Addenda: Here is the official press release on the awards (different from the link to Pound Pup’s page.) Please click to boost it to the top of Google. And if you have a blog, link it.
Hi Marley,
Thank you for paying attention to the Demons of Adoption Awards.
As much as I understand and appreciate your remark about Jean Strauss, I left her off the ballot, because the nominees for the Demons of Adoption Awards are all involved in the actual placement of children or in the promotion thereof.
There are many people and organizations that do harm to adoptees outside the realm of child placement itself, such as attachment therapists and those that squander the righteous course of open record access.
Those people do deserve an award like the Demons of Adoption, but fall outside of the scope we have set.
I was the one who nominated Jean and her buddy, Fiona Ma. I was also disappointed to see that their evilnesses did not get on the ballot.
Maybe there should be a “Demons Of Adoptee Rights” awards?!!!
I totally understand, Niels. I just found it hilarious when I read the nomination. You do wonderful work.
Hi Marley, I enjoy your blog very much as it gives us in Australia an idea of the adoption landscape in the U S A .
I notice the nomination of Debra Lee Furness from Australia in the Pound Puppy awards and I wondered if you knew that here in Oz her name stinks as she has alienated the Intercountry Adoption Groups by asking the Government to supply babies to adopters in a period of nine monthe as that is the time natural parents have to wait for a child. there are some who are star struck by her famous husband and therefore arequite happy to let her loose on the press re adoption but there are some of the moderate ones and most State Government beauracrats who wish she would shut up and go away especially when they find out how she procured her two American adopted kids and what happened to their mothers. Linda