Entertainment> Celebrities

Madonna's African adoptions part of growing trend

(Agencies)
2009-04-02 09:06

U.S. popstar Madonna and her adopted son David Banda visit the child's biological father Yohane Banda (L) in Malawi in this undated publicity photo released to Reuters March 31, 2009. Madonna took custody of the child in October 2006 and formal court approval of her adoption was given in May 2008. [Agencies]

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LILONGWE, Malawi – Madonna's efforts to adopt two youngsters from Malawi have put her in the media spotlight. But she isn't alone: a growing number of Americans are bringing home children from Africa as countries like China and Russia cut back on adoptions by foreigners.

The increase — particularly in Ethiopia — comes as the AIDS epidemic ravaging the continent leaves more orphans in impoverished countries without relatives to care for them.

Americans adopted 1,725 Ethiopian children in the 12-month period ending Sept. 30, 2008, about 70 percent of all U.S. adoptions from Africa, according to the State Department. The year before, 1,255 Ethiopian children were adopted by Americans.

While experts don't attribute Africa's growing popularity among adoptive parents to a celebrity factor, they do say high-profile adoptions by the likes of Madonna and Angelina Jolie have raised awareness of the availability of orphans on the continent.

"One of the good things about the Madonna adoption or Angelina Jolie, those adoptions brought the need to the attention of Europeans or Americans," said Thomas DiFilipo, president of the Joint Council on International Children's Services. "And it brought the possibility (of adopting in Africa) to people's attention."

Wes Stout, 41, who with his wife, Kristin, 37, has adopted two children from Ethiopia, agrees.

"I give some of the popularity of Ethiopia to her celebrity influence," he said of Jolie, whose daughter, Zahara, was adopted from the north African country in 2005, the same year the Stouts adopted their daughter, 3-year-old Kylia.

At that time, the Stouts' wait was less than a year. When they brought their son, 9-month-old Solomon, home six weeks ago, it was after an adoption process that took two years.

"The popularity soared," said Stout of Redwood City, Calif.

And, "while in the end the need is great, for most people who adopt, they are not just adopting to save a life," he said. "They are adopting to start a family and that's an important point."

Rich foreigners have been adopting children from poorer nations for decades. Mia Farrow, now the mother of 14, began adopting children from Asia in 1973, with an orphan from the Vietnam War. In addition to her daughter Zahara, Jolie adopted her sons Maddox and Pax from Cambodia and Vietnam.

But critics have slammed Madonna's efforts to adopt a second child from Malawi this week, accusing her of acting like a rich "bully" and using her money and status to fast-track the adoption process. On Tuesday, Madonna insisted she was following standard procedures.

Many adoption agencies and child rights activists also argue it is preferable for children to be taken care of by relatives or their communities, with foreign adoptions allowed only as a last resort.