ACHIEVING SAME-RACE ADOPTIVE PLACEMENTS FOR AFRICAN-AMERICAN CHILDREN- CULTURALLY SENSITIVE PRACTICE APPROACHES

A disproportionately large number of African American children are ent ering the public child welfare system, and many are in need of plannin g for adoptive placement. Although agencies specializing in adoption o f minority children have been extremely successful in achieving same-r ace adoptive placements for African American children, funding and sup port for some of these initiatives have been withheld due to federal a nd state legislation designed to limit the consideration of race as a major factor in the selection of adoptive families. This article analy zes these issues, and describes successful placement practices used by a private agency in California and a public agency in Texas. Suggesti ons for culturally competent practice are elaborated.