The American family has been fighting for five years for the right to complete the adoption of a girl from Russia

Photo: Facebook / Parents United for Russian Orphans

In December 2012, the Morris family from the American city of San Diego didn’t have a few days to complete the adoption of the Russian girl Lera with Down Syndrome - the “Dima Yakovlev law”, which prohibited US citizens from adopting children from Russia, came into force. Morrises, as well as around 30 families, who found themselves in a similar position, filed Russia in the European Court of Justice, but only monetary compensations could win. Five years later, they are still trying to adopt Lera. Their fight history tellsJellyfish".

Catherine Morris, a resident of the California city of San Diego, is now 49 years old, she is a housewife and has been raising children. She and her husband, an engineer Stephen Morris, have four of them. These are three of their sons - two adults already - and an 10-year-old daughter adopted in the US in 2010. In the summer of 2012, the family decided to adopt a child from Russia - Leroux.

Photo: Facebook / Parents United for Russian Orphans

The Morris family flew in to meet Leroy in July, 2012. According to Catherine, she wanted to adopt a child with Down syndrome.

“We knew that we could provide proper care and comfort, because I had worked with such children before,” explains the woman. - I know: they have great potential if they are given everything they need for rehabilitation and study. We decided to adopt a child from Russia - we always loved Russian culture, plus in the USA there are very few children with Down syndrome who can be adopted. Almost everyone who has not terminated a pregnancy, having learned about it, raise and raise such children independently. But we knew that in Russia the situation was different. ” (According to the data provided by Kommersant, now children from Down syndrome are refused in Russia to 50% of mothers; in Soviet times, this figure was much higher.)

In October, 2012, the Morrises filed all documents with the St. Petersburg City Court for adoption of Lera. 26 November the court returned them and decided by 30 December 2012 to correct all the shortcomings.

On the bill, which will prohibit the adoption of Lera, Catherine Morris learned on the birthday of a girl - December 19. Even when December 28 law was signed by President Putin, the Morris family thought that they would still be allowed to complete the procedure - after all, it was started when even the ideas of this law did not exist yet. “There was complete confusion - it’s not at all clear who will have time to adopt a child, and who is no longer there,” Catherine Morris tells about those days. - The next four months, representatives of our government called us, told us that they were trying to settle the issue of adoption with the Russian authorities. But in April 2013, we were told: We stopped negotiating, you can adopt a child from another country, but not from Russia. ” Then came the official response from the Russian authorities, it said that the appeal of the adoption of Morrisov "returned to the database."

Putin's Christmas Miracle

Catherine Morris wrote to Downside Up, a Russian charitable organization that helps families with children with Down syndrome. She asked me to find Lera a new family. She was told that it would be almost impossible - usually children with such a syndrome are not taken to foster families.

Then Morris began to fight. Due to the law adopted in December 2012, the adoption procedure, in addition to Morris, did not have time to complete the 30 American families. They organized themselves into a community called Parents United. Together, they are trying to find any ways to help children who have almost become part of their families. They are raising money, trying to attract the American authorities and public organizations to the campaign for the abolition of Russian law - or at least to let the process begun before the ban be completed.

Photo: Facebook / Parents United for Russian Orphans

Parents united wrote letters to presidents Putin, Obama and Trump. For example, Putin in December 2013, Catherine Morris and other families asked to perform a “Christmas miracle” - and to allow the adoption to be completed.

“We met wonderful Russian children whom your government chose for us many months ago. We love these children. We held these children in our arms, and they conquered our hearts. We feel parental love for them, we dream to hug them again and to celebrate the New Year with them. As a parent, you are familiar with the joy and depth of fatherly love, ”said the appeal of American families to the Russian president.

There was no answer to it.

Parents united filed a lawsuit with the European Court of Human Rights - and won. In January, 2017, the court recognized that their right to a fair trial in Russia was violated - all trials on adoption of Russian children by US citizens from December 2012 were simply interrupted. But the ECHR did not have enough authority to allow Americans to complete adoption.

“We were awarded around 3 thousand dollars. But I don’t need money, I want Lera to have a home and family, ”says Morris.

Morris and her colleagues recorded a video in which they talked about their situation. In 2016, the documentary “To the Moon and Back” was filmed about these families, it was shown in the US Congress. Morrises intend to fight to the end - that is, four more years: at the end of 2021, Lera will be 16 years old, and from this age adoption is prohibited by American laws.

Most guys are fine

Each year, the Morris family sends gifts to Lehr, other children from its group and staff in the Peterhof boarding house. They never did it personally: according to Catherine, Russian officials warned her that such an act would be contrary to the law on the ban on adoption. Therefore, she sends packages with things and toys through acquaintances and friends. This year, she sent all the girls on the doll, and Lera also sent a checkered dress and ballet flats.

Photo: Facebook / Parents United for Russian Orphans

Valery Asikritov, director of the Peterhof boarding school № 1, has been working here since its foundation in 1986. According to him, orphans and children who were brought here by parents, having learned about the diagnosis, are about 50 / 50 in the orphanage (there are more than 300 wards living in total).

“Parents are simply unable to support such a child. And society is not ready for this. And the guys need constant medical care, says Asikritov. —That we communicate, we share experience — we work with the Germans. They come there buses, transported to clinics, everything quickly. And we will go with the child to the clinic, we must defend a huge queue, then to another office for a ticket. Well, you yourself understand everything. "

“As soon as this [prohibiting foreign adoption] law appeared, I said that it would hit primarily the most difficult category of children,” Asikritov says. - Well, almost they are not adopted in Russia, and abroad can create good conditions. Here we had the experience: one American family took a boy with Down syndrome. We still maintain relationships. And I see how he developed and changed, he became like his own children in this family. ”

“I communicate with many who adopted children from Russia. Most guys are doing very well, confirms Catherine Morris. “Some have peculiarities, including Down syndrome, but they study well, can read and go to school with other children.” My heart hurts when I realize how much Lera missed because we were not allowed to adopt her. ”

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