An American woman with a “mild intellectual disability” has made history this week, by winning a two-year case to be reunited with her child.
Sara Gordon, a pseudonym for the now 21-year-old woman, succeeded in having her daughter Dana returned to her care, after she was taken away and placed into foster care at just two days old.
Gordon had been told by county child welfare officials that she was unable to look after her child due to her disability, with records stating how she had missed a night feeding because she couldn’t read the hospital clock properly.
The report also mentioned how the new mum was not able to burp the child properly, as well as stating that she was “uncomfortable” changing the baby’s nappy right after childbirth.
Last year, Sara’s family lodged a federal complaint against the decision to take Dana away from her, claiming that Sara had been discriminated against because of her disability.
A report was then issued by the Justice Department and the US Department of Health and Human Services, ordering the local authority to support Gordon’s efforts to be a mother, or face a lawsuit.
Legal action followed, but with a positive ending this week for Gordon – the court has granted custody of two-year-old Dana to Gordon’s mum, with whom she lives.
After the ruling, Gordon’s lawyer told Today that she was “giddy” with excitement.
The Department of Justice responded to the ruling with a statement which read: “She is a loving, caring, and conscientious mother who is willing to do whatever it takes to have her daughter in her life. There is no discernible reason…that she and her parents do not have the ability to care for her child safely.”
A report has now called for new child welfare policy changes to be implemented by the state going forward.
