Mirah Riben on Huffington Post


Abortion, Adoption and the Destruction of Family and Parental Rights

The Right has taken a complex issue and narrowed it down to a catch phrase – “Adoption not Abortion” – that arbitrarily and narrowly defines it in black and white terms, positing adoption as the solution to reduce abortion. The debate over when life begins will be left to others. Presenting adoption as an alternative to abortion is an absurd premise. Abortion is a choice to not be pregnant. Carrying…


The Hottest Gift This Holiday Season: Human Babies?

By Mirah Riben A 47-year-old Georgia woman was arrested after attempting to illegally obtain a baby for her teenage daughter. Detectives started investigating Elaine Williams after a citizen called police about a suspicious Craigslist ad. The post asked for unwanted babies, saying mothers could drop them off in a “baby box”. According to investigators, Williams was attempting to buy a baby for her 14-year-old daughter. Police say Williams told them…


Utah, Still the Baby-Stealing State and the On-Going War on Fathers

By Mirah Riben Robert Manzanares has been fighting for his constitutional right to nurture his daughter for an astounding eight years. Colby Nielsen’s case is currently unfolding. These are just two of the many fathers fighting Utah for virtually stealing their children and having them adopted without their fathers’ consent. Colby Nielsen and Kaylee Utah, LDS and Adoption Mormons are opposed to abortion and also to children being raised by…


End the Witch Hunt: In Defense of Dr. Robert Oscar Lopez

By Mirah Riben     “I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it.” Evelyn Beatrice Hall, The Friends of Voltaire   Dr. Robert Oscar Lopez is facing loss of tenure and his teaching position at the State University of California because of trumped up charges based on lies and reverse discrimination. Why do I care and why am I supporting…


Parental Equality, NOT “Adoption Equality”

By Mirah Riben Children need and deserve for both parents raising them to have full parental rights. Children need this regardless of their parents’ sexual orientation. Thus, same sex couples are fighting for what they are calling “adoption equality.” Every child, however, also deserves an unaltered true record of his birth, regardless of who has legal parental rights.Traditional adoption is not the best route to achieve these goals and the…


The Dark Side of Adoption

By Mirah Riben In the midst of all the happily-ever-after media coverage of adoption, now that it’s November, and National Adoption Month (NAM), it’s incumbent upon us to look at adoption realistically and even critically. The fact is that most adoptions are not saintly acts of altruism but simply the fulfillment of the adopters’ hopes and dreams. That means that adoption, adoptive parents, and adoptive families are as imperfect as…