The debate about intercountry adoption is not about experiences

How one experiences being adopted is not in itself unimportant. However, the experiences are not strictly necessary to be able to discuss the system.

Artist Jorun Stiansen wants nuance in the debate about intercountry adoption.

As a critic, I do not believe that one or the other experience should have less space than another. After all, they are experiences. These are not the objects of criticism and scrutiny.

The problem arises when there is a poor distinction between the system and individual levels. I believe that Stiansen and those who share this opinion do not master this well enough.

How one experiences being adopted is not in itself unimportant. Yet, the experiences are not strictly necessary to be able to discuss the system. This is despite the fact that adoptees are part of the system.

Stiansen writes: "Those who have suffered injustice must have their case brought to light and justice served. But don't forget those of us who stand on the other side of this debate..."

Irregularity and illegality do not depend on whether adoptees associate adoption with something vital, positive, and have good experiences. The formulation "us on the other side of the debate" therefore seems strange to me.

Examining the system and uncovering blameworthy negative circumstances is not the same as excluding positive experiences. After all, there may have been systemic failures in cases while the individual had a positive experience with being adopted.

Stiansen writes that she has chosen to believe that what is in her papers is true. On a systemic level, it highlights something important that is not addressed in more detail. Namely, the fact that most people must choose to believe that it is true. One can of course live with that, but it is a human right to know one's biological origin. It is in itself a systemic error that one cannot know for sure, regardless of how one lives with that systemic error.

The debate about intercountry adoption that is going on now should be about the system, and it should be held at the system level. It is not a debate about experiences. It is important to separate the snot from the mustache in an attempt to nuance the debate.