CNN —
Adam Krapser has become something of a celebrity over what critics say is a flawed U.S. law that unfairly leaves tens of thousands of adopted children in stateless limbo.
Eight years after being deported from the United States, where she had lived for decades, Crapser appeared in a Seoul court on Wednesday, suing for compensation for flaws in the adoption process that ruined her life.
Klapser’s case shines a spotlight on loopholes in the international adoption system that have separated some families, as Congress considers a bill that could allow the 49-year-old to be returned to the United States.
“What about my children? Don’t they deserve to buy a house?” Krapser told CNN on Friday, referring to the two children she was forced to leave behind, including her 10-year-old daughter.
“I wanted to be with her. I wanted to raise her. I wanted to be involved in her life. I wanted to be her father. To give her the life I didn’t have. “I wanted to do everything I could to help,” Krapser said. “I want her to know that I’ve been fighting this since all of this started, before she was born.”
Krapser was adopted by a family in Michigan in 1979 and lived in the United States for 37 years. However, his American family and guardians were unable to secure citizenship papers for him, and he was deported in 2016 after a lengthy legal battle.
“I’m stuck. I’ve been stuck like this for quite some time,” Krapser said of her desire to return to her family and the uncertainty of her future.
Krapser made history in 2019 as the first Korean adoptee to file a lawsuit against the South Korean government and adoption agency for damages.
He is awaiting a court ruling in Seoul, while a bill that could grant him U.S. citizenship remains stalled in Congress.
The proposed bill, the Adoptive Citizenship Act of 2024, would automatically grant citizenship to international adopted children and correct loopholes in the Child Citizenship Act of 2000, which excluded those who were 18 years or older at the time of the law’s enactment. It is intended to.
Krapser, who was 25 years old at the time of the bill’s passage, was not a U.S. citizen.
Krapser remains skeptical of the new bill’s passage, citing the lack of progress since debate on the recently introduced bill began in 2017, adding that “probably” there will be no change in the way we live. He pointed out that it may not come true.
A spokesperson for Democratic Rep. Adam Smith of Washington, one of the bill’s co-sponsors, said, “It is unlikely that we will see any further action during the remainder of the 118th Congress, which ends in January 2025. ,” he said. Given the election and the lame duck period we anticipate, we look forward to passing this much-needed legislation in the upcoming Congress. ”
The bill has been referred to the House and Senate Judiciary Committees for review.
Don Bacon, a Republican Republican from Nebraska and a father of two adopted children and another co-sponsor, said in a statement to CNN: However, due to the peculiarities of current law, some international adopted children are not citizens. Congress needs to fix it. ”
According to a 2023 lawsuit filed in the Seoul Central District Court, Krapser moved between nursing homes and nursing homes after being abandoned by her first adoptive parents in the 1980s.
In 1989 he was adopted by another couple, who were charged in 1991 with physical abuse and assault of foster children and adopted children, and convicted in 1992.
According to the lawsuit, Krapser’s criminal history, including robbery and assault charges, came to the attention of U.S. immigration authorities around 2012 when he applied to renew his expired permanent resident status (commonly known as a “green card”). Ta.
“People often say that I made a lot of mistakes in the United States and got into a lot of trouble, and I admit that,” Krapser said in testimony Wednesday, according to the Associated Press. “I had no family, no Koreans around me, so I survived as long as I could in the United States.”
This criminal record was considered a violation of his green card eligibility, and in 2016 he lost his fight to be deported to South Korea, the country of his birth, a place he did not know the language or customs of.
“It’s a bad dream. Some people come to South Korea of their own free will, but others come to South Korea with some sort of plan. When you go to immigration prison, you can’t do anything like that,” he said. spoke to CNN, expressing the lack of institutional support they had to prepare for a forced return.
Krapser’s attorney previously told CNN that his criminal history does not fully reflect the reality of his experiences, including physical abuse and abandonment by his first adoptive parents, and facing further abuse upon subsequent adoption. He emphasized the weakness of many adoptees. .
Having grown up without any contact with Koreans, he says he suffers from a sense of alienation from the place he should call home.
“We have no other choice,” Crapser said. “All I know is American culture. I didn’t know anything about Korean customs, culture, rules, history, etc. because I was deliberately kept in the dark.”
On Wednesday, Krapser told CNN in an appeals court in Seoul that he blamed both South Korea’s adoption agency and the government.
Despite being barred from returning to the United States for 10 years, he said he has pursued legal avenues to be with his children. He hasn’t seen his 10-year-old daughter since 2017.
“I literally tried every legal avenue to get back to the United States sooner so I could be in my child’s life without success,” he said.
He said Krapser could apply for the exemption within two years, but it remains unclear how long the legislative process will take. Attempting to return to the United States beforehand could result in a lifetime ban.
“I want to make sure that not only my children, but also their adoption history, has a historical record of having ties to other countries that did not ensure that their children were naturalized in their host country.” ” he added. .
CNN has reached out to Holt Children’s Services, the adoption agency, for comment, but did not immediately receive a response.
In response to recent media coverage of adoptions from South Korea in the 1980s, Holt International acknowledged the possibility of unethical conduct in a public statement and acknowledged that Holt Children’s Services was separated from Holt International in 1977. pointed out.
“These reports highlight serious concerns, and we do not intend to downplay them or ignore the fact that mistakes were likely made,” Holt said in a statement. .
According to reports, last year a lower court in South Korea awarded damages to Krapser for Holt’s failure to inform his adoptive parents in the United States about the steps needed to secure citizenship after completing the adoption in a state court. The court ordered him to pay 100 million won ($72,300). Lawsuit.
However, the Seoul Central District Court rejected Krapser’s additional claims against Holt, absolving the government of liability. Both Mr. Krapser and Mr. Holt appealed, arguing that Mr. Krapser was under no legal obligation to guarantee Mr. Krapser’s citizenship, according to the Associated Press.
According to the Associated Press, government lawyers said officials at the time had no legal obligation to verify the citizenship status of adopted children and found no clear reason to question the accuracy of Mr. Krapser’s paperwork. Ta.
The Seoul High Court is scheduled to issue a ruling on Krapser’s claim for monetary compensation on January 8th.
