US: From Failed Adoption to Homelessness and Incarceration (Commentary)
Imprint – June 28, 2023
It all started with my failed adoption. I was 8 years old when I was first placed in the foster care system. I was placed in multiple foster homes and attended many adoption fairs, where adults literally walk around and pick out what kid they want. Finally, I was adopted at the age of 12. That adoption didn’t work out, landing me right back in the system. As a teenager in foster care, it’s not so easy because you don’t get the care and attention a little kid would get. Because of that, foster homes were out of the picture for me. I was thrown from shelter to shelter, and eventually ended up living on the streets because the shelters only let me stay for up to 30 days. The system had no place for me to go. I know this is the case for many other foster youths. That is what the pipeline does. Foster youth end up homeless and surviving on the streets because they have no options. The option they did have was to sleep on the floor at the DSHS office, which is still homelessness to me.
https://imprintnews.org/youth-voice/from-failed-adoption-to-homelessness-and-incarceration/242485