Decoding Our Origins: The Lived Experiences of Colombian Adoptees

Decoding Our Origins: The Lived Experiences of Colombian Adoptees is written by seventeen authors who were born in Colombia and adopted internationally. Their individual stories illustrate different aspects of the transracial adoption experience. The traumatic loss of their mothers, culture and identities; racism; and severe abuse are amongst the tough topics addressed frankly and head on. However, these first-hand accounts also highlight the indomitable tenacity and perseverance embodied by the authors as they negotiate their way through childhood, parenthood, search, reunion, and the nail-biting wait for DNA test results. All of the authors of Decoding Our Origins: The Lived Experiences of Colombian Adoptees started off life in similar circumstances, having lost their families, language, culture, and country via adoption to countries outside of Colombia. Though their lives diverged, an invisible connection remained amongst them: the need to search for their first families and reconnect with their original culture and homeland. With the advent and subsequent worldwide expansion of Facebook in the early 2000s, people with common interests or life experiences have been able to find each other and talk about myriad topics in a safe space. The eighteen authors of this anthology met in the closed Facebook group Adopted from Colombia! As trust developed, so did the realization that the stories they have to tell are important and that the time has come for them to be told. This is the first published nonfiction anthology written exclusively by Colombian adoptees. Intimate and honest, the powerful and moving stories in the words of the transracial adoptees themselves result in a unified voice that reminds us to never, ever give up hope. All proceeds from this book will go toward financing DNA kits for Colombian adoptees and Colombian first family members, in an effort to reunite families separated by adoption.

Abby Forero-Hilty was adopted from Bogotá, Colombia, at the age of two months and grew up in a small suburb of New York City. She received her BS in human biology from the State University of New York at Albany and her MS in medical anthropology from University College London. In 1998, Abby moved to Switzerland, where she lives with her life partner and their two children. She currently works in the pharmaceutical industry, collaborating with scientists and health authorities worldwide to bring new oncology drugs to patients in need. Abby enjoys hiking, dancing, writing, travelling, exploring nature, and being with beloved friends and family. She has been reunited with her family in Colombia since March 2012. This is her first book.