What do you think of safe havens?

Question

I'm curious to see some of the opinions on these?

Answer 1

I wish that more girls would plan out an adoption but allowing them to leave their babies in safe havens gives them a change to change their minds without getting in trouble. I think they're good, but I think it would be good to promote them a little bit more to young girls. I think alot of girls dont' know you can leave your baby at a hospital and they will find it a good home.  

Answer 2

Dear Gershom,

While I understand the projected purpose of these laws/sites, I think they are a very flawed idea for the following reasons:

*There is no counseling for the Mother

*It eliminates almost all possibility that the surrendered person will EVER have his or her history, medical or otherwise

*There is no guarantee that the surrendering person is the legal parent of the child

*It TOTALLY ignores father's rights

*It has not been shown to actually prevent infanticide or abandonment (The argument being that women who use Safe Surrender/Haven would have relinquished anyway since they went to the trouble to find a Safe Surrender/Haven site.)

Aside from those reasons, I personally feel that this is just another way to procure children for adoption with less hassle for the people who facilitate them.

ETA: I thought I'd add some links for you:

http://www.safesurrendersite.com/

http://www.adoptioninstitute.org/whowe/l...

http://www.nchs.org/home/downloads/OurSa...

http://www.exiledmothers.com/speaking_ou...

http://www.boston.com/news/local/article...

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story...

Answer 3

I think that mothers who use safe havens are the very mothers who should NOT give their babies away.  It is a cry for help from a woman who passionately loves her child but is struggling to provide for him/her.  A mother who chooses safe haven is a loving mother who needs all of our support to parent and NOT abandon.

Unfortunately, the result of safe haven is often the loss of genetic connection for the child.

Answer 4

hate 'em

If anyone is REALLY so unstable taht they will toss their child in the trash then I really don't think that they will be in the position to take the child to a safe haven, therefore it is helping no one.

Answer 5

I don't think it is a perfect solution, but I would rather see a baby abandoned in a safe place, then thrown in a dumpster.  I am not sure of the effectiveness it has on preventing these kinds of tragedies, but even if one child is saved, I think it's worth it.  

Not ideal, but better than the alternative.

Answer 6

You mean a baby drop off at a hospital or fire station etc. I think their fine it’s much better then to place the baby in rubbish, abandoned them in a park or something. In my area in April or May a baby boy was found in a trash bin thank the lord he was found and unharmed.  It was also evident that the boys “mother” had purposely tried to hide him. The only kind thing she did was that it was a yard waste bin so I imagine it would not have had the stench that a trash bin would have had.  

Answer 7

I would need to read more from safe haven mothers and those placed to form a soild opinion.

If you had any links it would be awesome.

Answer 8

They are legalized abandonment.  They also have not ended, or reduced, illegal abandonment.  The women who suffer from the types of sicknesses that leads to infanticidal behaviour are not the ones using safe havens.  If they were, there would be fewer incidents.  Information from the county coroners' offices in 54 of the 58 California counties showed no decrease in the number of such incidents the 5 years following the enactment of safe haven laws than existed the 5 years prior to the enactment of them.  Three years later, we still have such incidents.  Although illegal abandonment has remained rare, as it was prior to safe have legislation, it is still not reducing.

However, plenty of children are being left at safe havens with blankets, toys and notes.  Considering the care these mothers took prior to using the safe haven, these children were clearly not in danger of being discarded in a dumpster.  In schools and hospitals, girls and women who feel they cannot raise their children are sometimes told to "just safe haven" it, rather than go through traditional adoption channels.  Traditional adoption channels would allow for the child's history, including a medical history, to remain intact.  Legal abandonment in the form of safe havens does not.

Safe havens also leave the door wide open for people other than the parents to take children and drop them off.  

Answer 9

Are you referring to emergency foster or shelter programs or are you referring to places where you can 'turn in' an infant without being asked questions and without prosecution?

I think both are better than the alternative.

I think that, for numerous reasons, the second scenario (drop off locations) doesn't seem to be working in many cases. In some areas I would assume that a woman/teen wanting to 'turn in' her child would still be afraid that people would see her or recognize her...i.e. it obviously isn't fail proof.

My main problem with these situations is, as always, the rights of the child. If you drop off your child at a safe haven and walk away, that child will never be allowed access to any medical or personal records concerning themselves. While it may be beneficial to the mother, any case of the child not having access to their own information is a cause for concern. Since this is a case of 'either/or' I have to say that it is always a better decision to place your baby with the fire dept, the local hospital, etc. than to simply leave your baby in a park or some other random area. Neither option would be a 'good' scenario in my opinion....but better than the alternative.