Don't let 2024 election drown out National Adoption Month

By Herbie Newell, Op-Ed Contributor Tuesday, October 29, 2024

With all eyes on the 2024 election, national attention is firmly focused on inflation, immigration, and abortion. However, it is imperative that we do not allow a vital election to overshadow the needs of millions of vulnerable children worldwide — waiting for their forever families. The first Tuesday in November will culminate in one of the most polarizing elections in U.S. history while simultaneously marking the beginning of National Adoption Month, which is annually designated in November. We must not allow the media fodder and endless debating among candidates to drown out nor neglect the essential conversation about child welfare.

Our country’s next leader will advocate for and implement policies that will affect the lives of vulnerable children for years to come. Policy matters because people matter, yet many times, policy neglects the impact on the most vulnerable: children. Will our political candidates finally address the growing needs of waiting children in the U.S. and worldwide? How will candidates prioritize adoption as a life choice and alternative to abortion?

Government advocacy and diplomacy are crucial for child welfare to effectively continue. I have seen a recent stonewall, making it more difficult than ever to advocate for vulnerable children, even within our own government. The current administration is far too concerned with redefining family than with finding permanence for the 369,000 kids living in U.S. foster care. We are bantering over illegal immigration while over 300 children, promised to U.S. families, languish in Chinese orphanages. The federal and state policies that the November election will shape will directly influence the support for child welfare services and the ability of families to navigate adoption.

Adoption must be highlighted as a safe, permanent, and loving alternative for children who cannot live with their biological families for various reasons. As a nation, we need not only political and governmental intervention for families and children, but we need the church to rise up out of the mire of political pandering and prioritize hurting people over projects and politics. We need a church that preaches the Gospel and exemplifies God's glory, goodness, and grace to vulnerable children.

Our hope and prayer for this year’s National Adoption Month is to raise awareness of the urgent need for adoptive families to provide permanence to children. These vulnerable children’s needs should be of national and international urgency. Every day, a child's basic needs go unmet, creating generational uncertainty and pain. Unfortunately, the political climate has the potential to mute this critical message.

National Adoption Month has the potential to be powerful in its ability to unite people across political, religious, and social divides. The adoption issues run deeper than the rivers that run red and blue as they relate to the universal value of humanity. The Congressional Coalition for Adoption is the largest bipartisan coalition on Capitol Hill, bringing fierce foes together as passionate advocates championing adoption as the solution to several child welfare issues facing our nation.

Arguably, the most talked about issue that is to be voted on in this election is abortion. While the abortion conversation on the pro-choice side focuses on a woman’s so-called right to choose the more extensive conversation about abortion alternatives is rarely, if ever, discussed. Adoption is a compassionate option for women who face unplanned or crisis pregnancies. While the Abortion Federation of America is clamoring for government money to pay $15,000 to $20,000 to abort babies well into the third trimester, millions of families stand ready, willing, and able to adopt these precious children.

Pro-life and pro-choice advocates alike can find common ground in promoting adoption as one of the most loving alternatives to abortion. This election cycle gives us a unique opportunity to elevate the conversation about adoption. Supporters who value life and family should be advocating for the candidates and policies that will make adoption more accessible for expectant mothers and prospective adoptive families.

This November don’t let the most historic election of our time drown out National Adoption Month. Let it be a catalyst for holding our politicians accountable for speaking out in support of adoption as a cornerstone of family-building and child welfare advocacy.

Herbie Newell is the President of Lifeline Children’s Services, the largest Evangelical Christian adoption agency in the United States. The organization serves vulnerable children and families through private domestic and international adoption, family restoration, and pregnancy counseling. Herbie is also the author of Image Bearers: Shifting from Pro-Birth to Pro-Life.