African American Families, Korean Black Children, and the Evolution of Transnational Race Rescue

Abstract

In the immediate aftermath of the Korean War, African American soldiers’ families became a significant pool of adoptive families for Korean black children. Although child welfare officials had considered military families less than ideal adopters, black soldiers’ families enjoyed economic and social benefits that set them apart from many African American non-military families interested in adopting. A soldier’s affiliation with the military allowed some to conform to the gender conventions that appealed to child welfare officials. While a military salary could be meager, soldiers’ access to benefits like base housing and the Post Exchange made it possible for some to function as primary breadwinners and their wives to devote themselves to caregiving. Child welfare officials with organizations including International Social Service devised efforts to increase adoptions of Korean black children by African American soldiers’ families, and especially the families stationed in Japan. These efforts evolved as US military and political officials, Korean political officials, and representatives of sectarian and nonsectarian aid agencies, attempted to devise strategies to care for Korea’s mixed-race children.