On behalf of the American Adoption Congress (AAC), I am contacting you as part of the community seeking access to the original birth certificate (OBS) for adopted adults through legislation. Those who oppose access claim that the birth parents will be harmed, that they were promised anonymity. To counter this, Oregon collected the names of 500 birth mothers who signed a petition favouring access that became a full page ad in an Oregon newspaper. Many attribute the opening of records in Oregon to this long list of names that changed public opinion regarding the need for access.

Today the AAC is building another list. This growing list of birth parents in both the US and Canada will demonstrate to legislators in every state and province that birth parents do support open records.

In the wake of Oprah's reunion with her sister, AAC has drafted an online petition to be signed by birth parents in support of adoptee access to the OBC. We are asking individuals, organizations, support groups, searchers and others to enlist birth parents to add their name to the petition. The link is listed below. Please post this link on Facebook, Twitter, your website, and in your newsletters. Remember - numbers are the key to success.