Additional Coverage:
- Families from Tennessee to California seek humanitarian parole for adopted children in Haiti (nbcnews.com)
Haitian Children in Adoption Limbo
Esai Reed, a six-year-old Haitian orphan, has faced multiple evacuations due to gang violence. Now under the care of a U.S. organization, he cannot communicate with his adoptive mother or brothers in the United States because of unreliable internet and logistics.
55 families across the U.S. are pleading with the government to grant humanitarian parole for 70 children they are adopting from Haiti. However, the government has stated that children without final adoption decrees cannot leave the country.
Families argue that completing the adoption in Haiti poses risks, as they would have to travel to gang-controlled Port-au-Prince for visas and medical exams. Haitian officials disagree, emphasizing the need to follow legal procedures.
Uncertain Future for Children
The U.S. State Department is working to expedite adoptions but acknowledges that Haitian courts are often closed or operating with limited capacity due to violence. Meanwhile, the Haitian government is under a state of emergency, with high rates of kidnapping, murder, and sexual assault.
Lawmakers are supporting the families’ request for humanitarian parole, citing the extreme risks children face in Haiti. The U.N. reports that 700,000 people have been displaced by gang violence, half of whom are children.
Families’ Heartbreak
Adoptive mother Michelle Reed fears for Esai’s safety and the well-being of his brothers, who have experienced trauma in Haitian orphanages. She emphasizes that the children should not be forced to enter a war zone for paperwork that could be completed in the U.S.
Another family, the Emmersons, has lost their mother to gang violence in Haiti and is worried about their niece and nephew, who are now homeless and vulnerable. They fear what might happen if the children are required to travel to Port-au-Prince for adoption finalization.
Families are desperate for a solution that will protect the children and allow them to complete their adoptions safely. They believe that humanitarian parole is the only way to ensure that their children’s lives are not put at further risk.