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White parents give up their child for adoption because of her skin color!

Posted by Ria, 04 Jan

A lot of people are struggling with identity crisis. This has really damaged a lot of people emotionally. This happens a lot in cases of interracial adoption. Sara-Jayne Makwala King is such an individual who had to deal with this because everyone around her was different.

Sara-Jayne is mixed-race, born into a white home. She was born during the apartheid era in South Africa and was given up for adoption to a white couple in the UK. Guess what her biological mother told people about where her daughter went? Read on to find out...

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Loving home, no sense of belonging

Much as she was adopted in a loving home where she and her adopted brother lived, unlike her, the brother was white. Being mixed race, she barely met a child who looked like her in her neighborhood. It made her feel like "a fish out of water." She attracted unnecessary attention… even other kids often stared at her and played with her ‘different’ hair.

Growing up, she never stopped questioning her own identity because she felt like she didn’t belong.

Yes, she knew she was adopted. And much as her adoptive parents went out of their way to make her feel comfortable, they refused to divulge information about her birth parents and the reason for her adoption.

Eventually, she found out she was from South Africa. Not getting the answers she wanted to her never-ending questions gave her anxiety and depression and resorted to self-isolation that made her become withdrawn, pushed to the point of attempting suicide at 13. Even though she failed, she still engaged in self-harming behaviors and developed an eating disorder.

Unearthing her adoption story

So one day, she decided enough was enough and went to snoop in her parents’ room for answers where she stumbled upon a letter sent to her by her birth mother, a year after she was born.

What was in the letter was a heart-wrenching story of her adoption. She went to find out that her birth mother was white. It also had details of how her mother met a white South African man and followed him to South Africa where they began living together as she was working for a hotel in Johannesburg.

Then met a black hotel chef, had an affair with, and got pregnant. At the time of their romantic involvement, interracial relationships were forbidden under the apartheid regime.

When Sarah-Jayne was born, she appeared white so the mum was sure “Karoline” – the name she was given at birth – was her husband’s child.

A few weeks later, the mum realized she was biracial so she had to come clean to her white husband and doctor about her affair as she feared for her baby’s safety.

Adoption ‘story’ concocted

What followed was a plan that was concocted by their doctor, the mother, and her husband. They told family and friends that “Karoline” required medical help in London because she has ‘kidney disease’ just to get her safely out of South Africa. In London, she was put up for adoption where a loving British couple adopted her.

When asked about the whereabouts of “Karoline”, the biological mother said that she succumbed to the kidney disease while in London just to cover up her forbidden affair.

Devastation and depression

On realizing this coined story about her ‘death’ Sara-Jayne sank into more depression. How awful for parents who are meant to nurture you no matter what, to abandon a child because of skin color, is what she felt.

Reaching out to her biological matter made things worse.

Much as her biological matter responded when she reached out through an adoption agency, she didn’t want any further contact. She had no remorse, no apology. This shattered Sara-Jayne further. She landed a job in Dubai but lost it because of self-destructive behaviors caused by her past.

She decided to seek help in South Africa where it was affordable, where she strangely felt she belonged. She was finally home. When she ran into her half-brother, he responded warmly.

As she landed in Johannesburg, she felt a strange sense of belonging. Everything felt familiar, and she was finally home. Fortunately, she ran into her half-brother, her birth mom's other child, and surprisingly, his response was warm.

Finding herself

After shuttling between the UK and South Africa for a while she eventually settled in South Africa. She officially changed her name to “Sara-Jayne”. In 2017, she released an autobiography with her adoption story and her life. When she mentioned her birth father’s name while promoting the book on radio, people on Twitter helped her find her biological father’s number and they reunited.

Finally complete

The two embraced and cried in each other’s arms. She says it was the best day of her life. She even added her father’s last name to Sara-Jayne. She now goes by Sara-Jayne Makwala King. Having met her father and half-brother, she finally felt complete owning her identity as a South African woman.