Press Information About Unlearning Adoption, Family Preservation and Protection

Flemington, NJ - August 10, 2007 - In the wake of yet another celebrity announcing his plans to adopt, adoption activist and expert Jessica DelBalzo has released a new book criticizing celebrity adoptions.   The book, which is titled Unlearning Adoption: A Guide to Family Preservation and Protection, includes an entire chapter examining famous adopters like Rosie O’Donnell, Angelina Jolie, and Madonna.

    DelBalzo says celebrity adoptions “are setting a dangerous trend.”

    Though most Americans support the act of adopting, the author does not. She says that being adopted is unhealthy for children and damaging to their natural parents as well. Her claims are based on ten years of research and time spent working with expectant parents, and mothers, fathers, and adult children who were separated from their families by adoption.

    Unlearning Adoption praises Oprah Winfrey for her efforts to help African children without removing them from their homeland. The book goes on to condemn other celebrities who have recently adopted children.

    DelBalzo says the money and influence available to these famous adopters should be used to assist families who want to raise their children at home and abroad.   She cites Madonna as an example. “The child she is adopting has a father who loves him. Paying for little David to stay in Malawi with his family would have been an act of compassion. Removing him from there -- and from them -- is selfish.”

    As the founder of Adoption: Legalized Lies, a grassroots organization that helps expectant mothers find the resources needed to keep their babies and assists parents in contested adoption cases, DelBalzo says she has insight into adoption that few Americans have. She has previously been cited as an expert in newspaper, radio, and television segments criticizing adoption practices and supporting legal decisions that favor natural parents over prospective adopting couples.

    The author says Ricky Martin’s adoption intentions are part of a greater problem. “Few people realize the grief and loss associated with adoption for children and their natural families. They think they’re saving children.”

    “Saving children means supporting their families. The material benefits of a celebrity upbringing are not enough to counter the grief and loss associated with losing one’s natural parents,” DelBalzo says.

    Unlearning Adoption encourages celebrities and others to follow in Oprah’s footsteps rather than O’Donnell’s or Jolie’s.

    DelBalzo‘s advice is, “Follow the celebrity trends when it comes to fashion. Ignore them when it comes to family.”

Flemington, NJ - July 23, 2007 - New Jersey resident Jessica DelBalzo looks like an average, 20-something mom, but for the past ten years, she has been active in a small but growing radical movement to eradicate adoption. Her new book, Unlearning Adoption: A Guide to Family Preservation and Protection, released this week, offers a controversial look at what she terms, “the sinister side” of American adoption.

DelBalzo’s book details legal and ethical issues involving adoptions of the past and present, as well as psychological consequences faced by adopted people and surrendering parents. In addition to critiquing domestic infant adoption and international adoption, Unlearning... presents the sets of problems that are unique to foster care and modern legalized abandonment laws. Overarching themes throughout the book include advice for individuals and professionals working with adoption affected people, ways to prevent adoption, and alternatives for children who require substitute care.

The book has received glowing reviews from authors, activists, and researchers. Joss Shawyer, author of Death By Adoption, says Unlearning . . . is a “must-read.” She goes on to say, “If you want to know the truth about North American adoption, read this book.”

Psychotherapist Joe Soll, founder of New York-based Adoption Crossroads, states that the book is, “a thoughtful, well-written expose of adoption.”

DelBalzo who is neither an adoptee nor a surrendering parent, says that she came to her anti-adoption perspective “from a completely neutral place.” She explains that she began researching adoption as a student and learned of “the atrocities committed against marginalized families” at home and abroad.

The author founded Adoption: Legalized Lies, an anti-adoption organization which assists families in keeping their children, in July of 1998. DelBalzo reports that divulging her anti-adoption status has frequently landed her in hot water with people who are uninformed about the movement. “There are so many misunderstandings about who we are and what we believe,” she says. “Unlearning Adoption was written as a guide for the average person, dispelling the myths and offering up real alternatives for families in need.”

The book is in paperback form, comprised of 145 pages. It sells for $12.99 on Amazon.com.