Petition calls on WA Government to launch inquiry into ‘cruel’ forced adoption practices

Survivors of the forced adoption era have united in calls for a Statewide inquiry driven by Albany woman Jen McRae. Ms McRae is lobbying the State Government to launch a WA-specific inquiry into forced adoption practices. From the 1940s to the 1980s, thousands of unwed Indigenous and non-Indigenous young women had their newborns forcibly removed from their care and “given” to married couples. Like hundreds of others in WA, Ms McRae was taken from her mother after birth and forced into life with a foster family. Her foster family lived on a farm in Porongurup . She was not reunited with her biological mother until adulthood. More than 700 people have already signed a petition launched by Ms McRae which has several key requests. These include apologies from institutions involved in the forced adoptions, and free services to help reconnect adoptees and their biological families. Ms McRae also wants affected women to have access to all of their medical records without redaction or censorship, and she wants to know the extent to which the anti-lactation carcinogenic drug diethylstilbestrol was administered to mothers. Last week, Ms McRae and three other women met Minister for Women’s Interests Simone McGurk. Ms McRae presented the Minister with a history of forced adoption practices and personal experiences. In a statement to the Advertiser, Ms McGurk said forced adoption created a “lifelong legacy of pain and suffering”. “My heart goes out to the many families who have been — and continue to be — impacted by historical forced adoption practices,” she said. “I met with Jen McRae last week along with some other women who have been affected by these practices and I value their generosity in sharing what are extremely difficult and traumatic experiences.” Ms McGurk said she understood the requests for a WA inquiry into the matter. “I have requested the Department of Communities consider the recommendations from the Commonwealth and the Victorian Government inquiries and I am seeking further advice,” she said. “It is of utmost importance that people affected by these practices are supported and our current and future policies and practices take into account what has been learnt.” Ms McRae said the forced adoption era was a “terrible time in history for women”. “We need to keep putting pressure on to show them that there is a lot of secrets that are locked away and in doing so people can get a grasp on some healing,” she said. Another Albany woman, Judith Hendriksen, has signed the petition and also wants to see some action. In 1973, Ms Hendriksen was sent to Sisters of Mercy in Perth after a Catholic doctor in her hometown of Katanning told her adoption was the only option. She said she gave birth on her 17th birthday at St Anne’s Hospital in Mt Lawley and was immediately forced to give up her baby. “What I experienced was my baby being abducted against my will, she was taken at birth and not one of the nuns ever asked me what I wanted,” she said. “My grief has actually increased as the years have unfolded and this continual unnecessary separation between my now-adult taken daughter and myself continues to this day. “We are told to get on with our lives and forget. The mother-baby bond is sacred and is the strongest bond on this earth in my opinion.” The 65-year-old suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder. Last year, she decided to stop celebrating the birthday that she shares with her daughter. “It was the first year I boycotted my birthday, I could not bear people ringing me up saying ‘Happy Birthday’ or giving me presents on the worst day of my life,” she said. In October 2010, the WA Government became the first State to issued a formal apology for adoption practices. The Federal Government followed suit in March 2013. In 2013, Ms Hendriksen worked her way through a Canberra crowd in order to give Prime Minister Julia Gillard a hug after her apology speech. According to the Federal Department of Social Services, as many as 150,000 babies were the subject of forced adoption in Australia from 1951-1975. Harvey woman Anne Haylock was 23-years-od when she first met her mother after being removed immediately after birth. “The laws changed just before that which allowed mothers and children to have contact. Prior to the laws changing I didn’t even know her name,” Mr Haylock said. Ms Haylock said she signed the petition because “these stories need to be told”. “I want an inquiry so that we as a society learn from past mistakes,” she said. “Adoption is trauma and it affects us our whole lives and impacts on our relationships.” To see the petition, visit bit.ly/3xC1XIk.