Nicola Sturgeon has issued a “sincere, heartfelt and unreserved” apology to people affected by the practice of forced adoption. Thousands of unmarried women in Scotland were forced to give up their babies for adoption in the 1950s, 60s and 70s.
The first minister told Holyrood it was time to “acknowledge the terrible wrongs that have been done”. It is estimated 60,000 women in Scotland had babies adopted simply because they were unmarried. Many women were coerced into handing over their babies and some were denied access to housing and social benefits which may have allowed them to have kept them.
Some children forcibly removed from their parents as a result of forced adoption were abused, Ms Sturgeon told MSPs. She added: “It is important to say very clearly that many of them went to loving homes – acknowledging these injustices should never be seen as a rejection of the deep bonds that people share with adopted families.
“Nothing can ever invalidate the love that these families have for one another. But it is also clear that many of those affected – far too many – had a very, very different experience. We know some will always have lacked a sense of belonging, some may have suffered mistreatment or abuse.
Addressing MSPs in the Holyrood chamber as victims and campaigners watched on from the public gallery, Ms Sturgeon said forced adoption was “a level of injustice which is hard now for us to comprehend”. She said it was caused by a society that treated women as “second class citizens”. She said: “What happened to these women is almost impossible to comprehend
Source: BBC
In other news – Jaden Smith co-signs South African artist Pcee
American rapper Jaden Smith co-signs South Africa’s fast-rising star, Pcee. The SA singer has been making waves within the past few months due to his hit song, Kilimanjaro, whose dance moves have taken over social media spaces.
The American singer shared a video clip of Pcee and his team dancing to the song. Learn more
