Renowned actress, Millie Bobby Brown, has gained fame through her various roles and now for her marriage to Jon Bongiovi’s son, Jake. The young couple has recently been in the news for welcoming their first child through adoption. Adoption isn’t a very common occurrence around the world, averaging only 1-3% of children getting adopted each year. This poses an important question: why do people adopt and what causes the backlash that they get?
The process of adoption is a long one for parents looking to add to their family. There are many qualifications that a couple or an individual needs to meet to adopt. Some requirements include being over the age of 21, having proof of income, and submitting to criminal and child abuse checks. The next step in that process is selecting the type of adoption and then meeting with an advisor. After the adopter has met with the advisor, they will submit to a home study, where a case worker will review the home, conditions and family history. After that, they wait for a call about matching with a child. If the adoption is across state lines, they must complete more paperwork called Interstate Compact on the Placement of Children (ICPC). After all the steps have been completed, hopefully the couple is able to adopt a child.
Despite the level of commitment this lengthy process requires, many celebrities are criticized for adopting because they are seen as trying to improve their image and put themselves back into the spotlight. When singer and pop star Madonna adopted her second child in 2009, people claimed she was just using her fame as a renowned pop star to adopt another kid and draw attention to herself. They thought she was trying to improve her image by doing something “good” for a child. However, most celebrities, just like the average person, may adopt from other countries claiming that they want to give their kids a better life. In an article from The New York Times titled “Celebrity Adoptions and the Real World” the author stated that Mercy, Madonna’s child, had a better chance of thriving in a family environment rather than an orphanage in her home country. On the other hand, celebrity adoptions spark outrage because people claim they were being stripped from the families that were still in the home country. Unlike orphanages in the West, the orphanages in Africa and Asia are just long term holding places for the children until their families gain stability, so stripping the children away can cause families to never see each other again. Conversely, Madonna donated many funds to these orphanages and places of housing in Africa to make them better and help the families.
Celebrity adoption has been spotlighted in the media again due to Millie Bobby Brown’s recent adoption. People have begun to focus on Millie Bobby Brown because of how sudden this adoption was because of the fact that Brown and Bongiovi are relatively young. It led to people criticizing her for her age and speculating about whether she was ready to have a child. Brown and her husband have tried to keep as much of their life private as possible, but people are quick to judge and have taken to social media. Many people have commented saying that she is too young to be a mom and saying that “this is not the life a 21 year old should be living.” Brown has stated that she is “beyond excited to embark on this beautiful next chapter of parenthood in both peace and privacy.” She addressed her intentions for adopting by expressing that she doesn’t “see having your own child as really any different as in adopting” and goes on to say that she has always wanted to be a mom and start her family as quickly as possible.
In conclusion, some people find celebrity adoptions a good cause while others think they are doing it for attention. Some people view adoption as helping a child obtain a good life while not being stuck in the system. On the other hand, people say that money is the only factor in why celebrities adopt. Regardless of popular opinion, the true intentions behind celebrities adopting children are only known by them. With all that being said, how do you view celebrity adoption?
