As someone with two members of my broader family who were adopted, I have to say that this discussion is very onesided. Every case is unique but I suspect in future years a similar discussion will be demanding apologies on behalf of children who were left with obviously unsuitable birth mothers. Ann Keen's son grew up to have what I understand was a relatively happy and successful life. Would he have been able to do this with a single teenage mother who didn't have  broader family support and wouldn't have got adequate support from the state at that time? I don't know much about Ireland other than having read the book and seen the film Philomena. Her adopted son went on to work in the White House (when that was something that gave you credit). This was country that was far poorer than here and even less support for low or no income families and no one was offering a practical alternative to what actually happened. It is not clear to me what exactly the individuals or agencies that were involved in adoptions at this time are being asked to apologise for other than sometimes stygmitising mothers. Are you saying that they should not have sought to ensure that the child should have been brought up in a family where it was likely that they would not starve? Adoption is not a guarantee of a happy life and in some cases the child may indeed have turned out to be happier with its birth mother. However, we are all aware of cases from our own times when this latter choice has been catastrophic for the child. I would never want to minimise the pain and guilt that a mother must feel in having to give up a child but I also think it is grossly unfair to characterise the agencies that arranged adoptions as heartless and unfeeling. They acted in what they believed was everyone's best interests and my own experiences suggest they often got this right.

Entire Thread

Topic	Date Posted	Posted By
Ann Keen (previously MP)	27/03/26 11:41:00	David Marles
Re:Ann Keen (previously MP)	27/03/26 12:24:00	Steve Taylor
Re:Re:Ann Keen (previously MP)	27/03/26 12:27:00	Keith Iddon
Re:Re:Re:Ann Keen (previously MP)	27/03/26 15:59:00	Vanessa Smith
Re:Re:Re:Re:Ann Keen (previously MP)	27/03/26 16:34:00	Keith Iddon
Re:Re:Re:Re:Re:Ann Keen (previously MP)	27/03/26 16:42:00	Vanessa Smith
Re:Re:Re:Re:Re:Re:Ann Keen (previously MP)	28/03/26 09:28:00	Philippa Bond
Re:Re:Re:Re:Re:Re:Re:Ann Keen (previously MP)	28/03/26 16:10:00	Anita Blake
Re:Re:Re:Re:Re:Re:Re:Re:Ann Keen (previously MP)	29/03/26 01:07:00	Denis I. Fox
Re:Ann Keen (previously MP)	29/03/26 08:59:00	Philippa Bond

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