THESSALONIKI – [GNUSA, ANA-MPA] [Photos: Anatolia College website]
Approximately 500 Greek-born adoptees who were placed with families in the United States between 1950 and 1975 have expressed a desire to reclaim their Greek citizenship, and about 60 have already succeeded in doing so, while many others are awaiting the completion of the process, according to Professor Gonda Van Steen.
Speaking at a lecture in Thessaloniki organized by the Michael and Kitty Dukakis Center for Public and Humanitarian Service, on September 29, at Anatolia College and the Vafopouleio Cultural Center, Prof. Van Steen, author of the book Adoption, Memory, and Cold War Greece: Kid Pro Quo? discussed the roughly 4,000 Greek children placed for adoption in the United States from the late 1940s to the mid-1970s. A further 600 or so went to the Netherlands and about 50 to Sweden.
Prof. Van Steen explained that in an effort to help Greek -born adoptees in the United States reconnect with their roots, she and Mary Cardaras, herself an adoptee, met with Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis in September 2024. According to Prof. Van Steen, the prime minister responded positively to their request, describing it as an effort to correct a historical injustice. Six months later, a ministerial decision was issued, making it possible for adoptees abroad to reclaim their Greek citizenship.
This marked a shift in the state’s relationship with an “adoptee diaspora” eager to contribute to its country of origin, from exclusion to inclusion.
She also stressed that the work is not finished. Only three of the Greek institutions that once housed these children currently open their files, and she called for full access to the archives and further research.
A panel discussion followed, moderated by Dr. Christos Aliprantis, Executive Director of the Dukakis Center. He linked the history to present-day questions of state accountability and public service, and highlighted Prof. Van Steen’s decisive role in restoring adoptees’ voices to public debate.
During the event, Dr. Aigli Brouskou, Associate Professor Emerita of Social Anthropology at the American College of Thessaloniki (ACT) and author of Because of the Crisis, I Give You My Child, challenged the widespread belief that thousands of children from Thessaloniki were sent to the United States for adoption. Drawing on the Agios Stylianos registers, she noted that of the roughly 2,000 children the institution gave up for adoption over the 20th century, only 85 were adopted by American families.
Mina Filiopoulou, Attorney-at-Law and President of the Board of the Vafopouleio Cultural Center, stated that the adoptions during that era were formally legal. However, she noted that legality alone does not answer the fundamental question of whether the best interests of the child were protected.
Prof. Van Steen currently holds the Koraes Chair of Modern Greek and Byzantine History, Language and Literature at King’s College London. Her research will also be adapted for the stage in the theatrical production For Three Refrigerators and a Washing Machine, scheduled to be performed at the Maria Callas Theater in Athens from November 6-8 and November 13-15.
