Update: Looks like a middle school student updated Shin Ae-ra’s Wikipedia entry:
She and her husband has gotten wide popularity and repect from Korean public by adopting babies. In Korea, adoptation is nearly existed because of strong recognition only for bloody children. They also have donated several children in other nations.
Actors Shin Ae-ra and Cha In-pyo, who fell in love on the set of the TV Drama “Love in Your Heart,” have adopted a second daughter , Ye-jin. She joins two siblings, adopted daughter Ye-eun, aged 2, and biological son Jeong-min, aged 10. The couple are enthusiastic supporters of Compassion, an international organization that assists needy children.
In a previous interview after adopting the first daughter, Ms. Shin shared that she had talked with her dying mother about adopting a daughter, and her mother gave her support. In the interview linked above, Ms. Shin talks about the reactions of family members to the second adoption, which she and her husband were already planning when they chose Ye-eun, whom they met while volunteering at an orphanage. Their son, who worried that his mom didn’t love him when she brought home Ye-eun, readily agreed to the second adoption. Mr. Cha’s mother expressed concerns about the burden of raising an additional child but did not oppose the couple’s wish.
In the interview, Ms. Shin also shared that she had an initial difficulty bonding with her new daughter. At home, Ms. Shin would sleep with the elder daughter while a nanny took care of the new baby. “She was like an ice princess,” admitted Ms. Shin. The infant rejected her mother for the more familiar embrace of her nanny. The problem resolved when Ye-eun was sent off the preschool, freeing up Mom to spend time with her new daughter.
Cynics might dismiss Shin and Cha’s adoptions as publicity stunts, but in interviews, Ms. Shin’s enthusiasm for being a mom and love of her children shine through. Their first daughter’s name, Ye-eun, means “Jesus’ blessing,” and their second daughter’s name, Ye-jin, means “Jesus’ truth.”
A close friend of mine had discussed with her husband and their extended family the possibility of adopting a daughter to raise along with their two biological sons. The extended family were opposed, mostly out of concerns about social acceptance. My friend told me of other Korean couples who also had considered adoption but nixed the idea, either because the extended family flat out wouldn’t accept the child or because of the social stigma placed adoptive children.
By sharing with the public their adoption experiences, Ms. Shin and Mr. Cha are clearly trying to inspire Koreans to open their minds and hearts and accept adopted children as real family members.
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19 Comments
I don’t see their adoptions as a publicity stunt at all. God bless both of them.
Only an idiot would see adoption as a publicity stunt.
madonna?
Adoption is a noble thing to do.
definitely a good thing
The world would be a better place if more people had their virtues.
This is absolutely great. Adoption is not easy and I admire any person that adopts a child.
I’m glad they are doing this and hopefully it will inspire Koreans to get over their serious aversion to adoption.
However, like the pot-bellied pig of yore, adoption is the chic thing for celebrities now. It does make one second guess motives sometimes.
A number of American celebrities have adopted internationally, but Ms. Shin and Mr. Cha are the only Korean entertainer couple I know of who have adopted children. In the linked interview, Ms. Shin said she was embarrassed by praise for their decision to adopt and emphasized the commitment involved in raising children. Ms. Shin and Mr. Cha come across as big-hearted people who love children, and that is why they adopted two daughters. They were fortunate that their decision was accepted by their parents. From talking to my friend, it seems that younger Koreans are open to adoption; it is parental opposition that keeps the number of adoptions low.
They’ve done something very good.
What amazes me with the older generation, and some of the younger ones too, that they continue with these practices of cruelty- against adoption, don’t accept people without parents(orphans), against mixed race kids, suppression of family members, etc.
Deep down, they know it’s cruel and not the right thing, but “what will the neighbors think?”
F*** the neighbors! Sadly too many people here still care far too much what the neighbors will think to do the right thing.
, but as I said before, hopefully this celeb couple will inspire people to start changing their minds!
it’s not only that.
Didn’t you know ALL KOREANS are PURE Kims, Parks, and Lees?
they have a royal blood line to keep going !
Heaven forbid there should be a FAKE Kim, Park, Lee !
Oh, No!
Our Josang-nims, who were SURELY, SURELY kings, generals, etc, will curse us if we substitute a fake Kim, Park, Lee for a real one !
this, in my opinion, is why so many Koreans are negative about not only adopted kids,
but also.
1/ step kids.
2/ males are singled out all the more. They carry the last name. Can you imagine a fake, adopted Andong Kim, participating in their jaesas, and naming his son an Andong Kim, while he was not one drop of Andong Kim blood? Oh, my God !
If you notice here, there is a subtle reason why Cha adopted only girls.
Lineage.
Come get over, you damn fake Park, Lee, and Kims.
Most of you had slaves as jo-sangs.
to my knowledge, there is only one accepted adoption in Korea, and that’s within the family, usually a male.
It’s actually a kind of cruel adoption for both the birth mother, birth father, and the unlucky son of gun, who happened to be a “spare” son.
ask around. Look around.
Lineage.
Cynics might dismiss Shin and Cha’s adoptions as publicity stunts, but in interviews, Ms. Shin’s enthusiasm for being a mom and love of her children shine through. Their first daughter’s name, Ye-eun, means “Jesus’ blessing,” and their second daughter’s name, Ye-jin, means “Jesus’ truth.”
Clearly, there are Christian underpinnings to the decisions made by this celebrity couple to adopt.
I don’t think even Madonna’s was a publicity stunt.
And in a related story several thousand toddlers staged a violent protest in front of the US Embassy demanding they be adopted by Americans “before it’s too late.”
If this keeps up they may not be able to make Suzanne Brinks’s Arirang II.
Didn’t Rhee Syngman end up adopting towards the end of his life?
Probably not because he WANTED to, but due to confucian traditions, he HAD to since he had no sons.