21 Odd Interracial Adoption Statistics

Interracial adoptions happen all of the time. It occurs when a child from one race and/or ethnicity joins a family that is of another race. It is most often seen in American families who are willing to adopt children from developing nations, but it can occur domestically as well. Although white families are usually seen adopting minority children, it can also be the other way around at times too – especially when foster care is involved.

35% of the interracial adoptions that occur involved black or African American children.

Interracial Adoption Facts

Most adoptions in the world today are seen as being white children to white families. This is a trend that affects both domestic and international adoptions. It isn’t because of racial preference more than it is the fact that there is a belief that most kids who need adoption are white and most families who are looking to adopt are also white. These statistics show that this belief is not something that should have so much faith.

• For children who aren’t of a Caucasian background, 73% of their adoptions are to Caucasian families, making their adoption interracial.
• The percentage of international adoptions that are interracial: 84%.
• 1 out of every 5 adoptions in the United States that is privately initiated and funded will be an interracial adoption.
• 3 out of every 5 kids who comes from an international adoption is of an Asian race or ethnic background.
• Girls are slightly more likely to be adopted than boys, at 51% to 49%.
• The number of parents who have adopted internationally and chose to have an interracial adoption: 40%.
• For children coming out of Asia, only 19% of them are boys.
• China is the most common country for international adoptions to occur. Behind China is Russia, and together they account for nearly half of all international adoptions.
• Among all non-Caucasian children who are adopted, 73% of them are adopted into Caucasian families.

It only makes sense that most international adoptions would also be interracial adoptions. Most families in the United States are of a European descent, while most families in China are going to be of an Asian decent. With the bulk of adoptions occurring between these two nations, then many of them are going to end up being interracial in nature. It also makes sense that many of these China/US adoptions would be girls because of the male emphasis in family culture. This also brings up a hidden statistic: since mostly girls are adopted from China, but the overall gender percentages are rather equal, it means that boys are more likely to be adopted everywhere else in the world, on average.

Should We Be Changing How We Look At Adoption?

• Many families would like to adopt a child, but US adoption agencies will not generally place a child with single parents or those who are above the age of 40.
• Although there are high levels of interracial adoptions, most experts believe a successful adoption requires at least one parent with a similar ethnic background.
• There is a growing perspective that international adoptions that are interracial are simply a new form of colonialism.
• Even with setbacks like these, there have been consistent increases of interracial adoptions every year in the United States.

“Why adopt a child from oversea when there are children here who have good homes?” It’s a common question that US families face when looking at international adoptions, especially interracial ones. There are lots of kids in US foster care who could use a stable, solid home. There are also lots of kids around the world who need the same thing. Is it more important to take a kid out of foster care, when they likely have what they need? Or is it more important to take a child from an orphanage that doesn’t have staff or money to support the number of children living there? Those are the real questions that should be asked.

Not Everyone Loves The Idea Of An Interracial Adoption

• The percentage of white males who are against the idea of an interracial adoption: 72%.
• The only racial demographic that has higher opposition rates are African American women at 84%.
• Nearly half of all people believe that kids who are interracially and internationally adopted ill have behavioral, medical, or social problems of some sort that will be problematic.

Not much data is available on the overall outcomes of an interracial adoption, but the data that does exist shows that kids who are adopted in this type of situation are just as successful as children who are living with their natural parents. Up to 80% of interracial adoptions never seek any form of treatment for a serious behavioral or emotional issue. That’s the same for same-race adoptions as well. Self-esteem rates, social confidence, and all other adjustment categories are also statistically equal across the board. This means that even though there may be stigmas in place, the vast majority of children thrive after an adoption.

Here Are Some Remarkable Statistics

• Nearly 90% of white women are willing to adopt interracially, but only half of all white women are willing to adopt a white child.
• An adoption increases the chances of a child suffering from at least one serious psychological issue by up to 3x when compared to children who are not adopted.
• About 3 out of every 10 adoptions that occur from US foster care are interracial adoptions.
• 73% of children who are not white will be adopted into families that are white.
• Only 1 out of 3 international adoptions is of a boy.

The issues that children face today are intense and immense. There are threats of disease everywhere. There are threats of war everywhere. In some regions of the world, children are seen as tools to gain political leverage and nothing more. Some even see children as soldiers. By adopting children out of these environments, even if a family doesn’t have a similar background ethnically, they could be saving a life. That’s the most important statistic of all when it comes to interracial adoptions.