 Jackson Lee/Splash News Online |
Sandra Bullock and Louis Bardo aren’t letting a cold snap stand in their way.
The Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close star, 47, took to the streets of New York City on Monday with her 23-month-old son.
The actress recently told PEOPLE that motherhood is her top priority, and that she’s “very happy being a mom.”
“If you let a child into your life, you get a second chance at a childhood and you do things you thought were long past,” she tells Extra.
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Showing 53 comments
Mandy on
Now please don’t all start bashing me right away. What I am about to say is *gasp* a negative comment but it won’t be put in bad terms.
Now adoption is wonderful no matter what. These children need homes and parents adopt them and give them a family.
That being said, I just…….I don’t get why parents adopt children of different races. I know most say they don’t care where the child comes from so they can get one sooner and not be picky but I just don’t think its exactly right.
There is nothing wrong with adoption or being adopted but this boy will ALWAYS be known he’s been adopted. Even if she hadn’t told him.
I just don’t agree with it. And you can hate on me all you want but I think white should adopt white and black should adopt black. Period.
The kids will be much more accepted in society too.
Tina on
He’s so sweet.
Sarah K. on
Mandy, quite frankly, I feel sorry for you. I don’t know what race you are or where you’re from, but your viewpoint is saddening. You should go out into the world, experience new cultures, try new things, and meet new people. You may find that some of the most important relationships in your life are with those who don’t look like you.
Yes, there can be challenges when raising a child of another race, but the love between and parent and child goes way beyond skin color. Any mother should know that.
TM on
I second Sarah’s comments. It’s just so sad that people still harbor such terrible prejudices. By the way, Mandy, my daughter has one bi-racial parent, and one Caucasian parent, will she also be shunned by society? Simply disgusting!
trinia on
The only reason he would always be known as being adopted is because narrow minded people that take to time to voice their negative remarks and opinion will make it their business to remind him everyday of his life.
yes you are allowed to have your own opinion on adoption.. but who are you to tell the adoptee that they should remain within their race, you love who you love and when that child looks at him MOM and that’s exactly what she is… he does not see a WHITE WOMAN, and when she looks at her SON she does not see a BLACK BOY she sees her son.
Ronnie on
Yeah Mandy, you are right. You’re going to get bashed major for that comment.
Mandy on
If your child is born to a bi-racial and Caucasian parent that child will be mostly white just like Baby Spice’s children. So that really isn’t very relevant.
kristen on
Mandy your ignorance is amazing. First of all- why not “always know” that he was adopted? Is there a problem with being adopted? Should adoption stay a secret? And your ignorance concerning the “look” of bi-racial children is astounding. Since you seem to need some teaching then recognize that the child of a bi-racial parent and a Caucasian parent COULD still look just as dark as a child born to two African American parents.
Please tell us that you neither breed nor vote…
Mandy on
I wasn’t trying to be racist or anything. And maybe my thoughts are not transferring as well into words. I know what I am trying to say and its just not coming out the right way I guess.
There has to be someone who can see what I mean? I am not trying to bash anyone I’m just saying in my own opinion I don’t agree with it. I am not saying its wrong for someone to do it just that I would not do it.
I am a very accepting person. I am just differing on this a bit.
Mandy on
And maybe its all in how we are raised and the views our parents thrust upon us. I don’t know. I was just always told, I could not have someone outside of my own race. So yeah, I’m sorry.
alicejane on
Mandy, since when are Emma Bunton’s children the standards for bi-racial children? The great thing about the human race is the diversity within. Humans aren’t dolls that you get at the toy store that look and act the same way.
Yes, Baby Spice’s sons have lighter skin tones. What about Heidi Klum and Seal’s children? They have darker skin tones and dark, textured hair. Should they get prepared for a life of being unaccepted in society? Or should Heidi and Seal just not have fallen in love in the first place and stuck with “their own kind?”
I usually try to stay away from comments like yours but they pretty much blew me away.
Sarah Beth on
What if one parent is white and the other black, or Asian, or another ethnicity that has very dominant genes? Sheeeeeeeeesh.
Nancy on
Mandy, while your argument is flawed in so many ways, the major issue I have with it is your claim that kids will KNOW they were adopted. I know many many people with adopted children – some who are racially similar and others who are much more diverse. While it’s each individual family’s choice to tell their children where they came from, all of my friends have always been open and honest about their children’s adoptions.
Assuming that it’s “easier” just to pretend that a Caucasian child is the biological child of Caucasian parents makes me think that you have never actually known someone with adopted children.
Shannon on
What’s wrong with people knowing someone’s adopted? 0_0
Guinny on
What about me Mandy? One of us is African American and one is Caucasian. Both our kids have blue eyes and blond hair and are white. Should we just have picked a spouse of the same race too?
Nak on
But Mandy, knowing that most people disagree with you, why would you come in here announcing your views, (as if you are anybody to any of the readers) unless you wanted to start controversy.
If an athiest went on every Christian blog announcing that he didn’t believe in their beliefs, he’d be seen as a troll.
If you don’t agree with it, fine. But why are you TRYING to start trouble?
Just look at the pictures in disgust and move on. No one needs to know YOUR opinion, especially b/c you are NOT a celebrity, so most people on here don’t care about you or your opinion that much to want it.
addy on
One would have thought people like Mandy were “extinct” but i guess some people’s true selves hide behind a “smile” and only exhibit their true nature through the anonymity of the computer.
sara on
Mandy, if you don’t want to adopt a child of a different race, you don’t have to. No one cares whether you think it’s right or not, because no one else needs your permission regarding how to create their own families.
And Mandy, telling people not to flame you is just an invitation to do so. If you say hateful things, you deserve everything you get.
Jordan on
Thank you, Mandy. I needed a good laugh today and your ignorance provided just that.
I really really hope you don’t have children.
JM on
Mandy what kind of sheltered existence have you lived. even putting aside what might be an (albeit weird) personal preference of yours for white people to adopt white and black people to adopt black children.
it is impossible nowadays to tell from someone’s skin colour whether or not they were adopted unless you see both parents with the child, and even then it could be a child from a previous relationship.
if someone sees little louis with his mother, well they might assume that louis’ father is black, hence his skin colour.
doesn’t that make sense to you?
furthermore, since when was it a bad thing to be known to have been adopted? in any enlightened environment any stigma surrounding adoption has long disappeared. why should louis want to hide the fact that he was adopted?
Megan on
Blended families are nothing new — they’ve been around for thousands of years, and there’s no shortage of white women in the world who have dark-skinned biological children. The only reason Louis’ skin color would be a constant reminder of his adoption is if bigots decide to continue making nasty comments about it.
Rusty on
I think Mandy is just trying to start something… but she is (accidentally) bringing up has a valid issue.
In a perfect world, all adoptable children would be adopted only within their birth culture… because it would be easier for the CHILD. Most people are only really knowledgeable of their own circumstances and when parents adopt children of another culture — Greek, Chinese, Ethiopian, whatever — we need to EDUCATE ourselves. Its not enough to just love our children, we need to help them be “accepted in society” and teaching them about their culture is step number one.
Oh Mandy, not telling children about their adoption rarely works and is usually incredibly harmful to the child. Honestly, I find the idea of trying to “hide” a child’s origins disgusting.. As a loving parent, I doubt Sandra would have even dreamed keeping Louis’ adoption secret.
LeeAnne on
As a Caucasian woman, and the mother of an adopted African American daughter, I thought I’d chime in. My daughter was adopted at the age of four months, and is now 21.
My very favorite adoption poem follows: “Not flesh of my flesh, nor bone of my bone. But, nevertheless still my own. Never forget for a single minute, you weren’t born under my heart, but in it.”
For Mandy, I’d like to know what is so wrong with the fact that a person knows that they are adopted. Adoption is a very special way of building a family. Not only am I the mother of my daughter, I am the mother of three Caucasian sons that I gave birth to. I love each and every one of my children equally. They in turn, love me and each other equally. When introducing my children to others, I don’t say this is my adopted daughter ***** or this is my biological son *****. They are simply my children!
Oh and by the way, my African American daughter is now engaged to a Caucasian young man! I say, wonderful!! They are incredibly happy and incredibly in love!!
Jordan on
I’m going to make an extremely racist comment and then say ‘I wasn’t trying to be racist’… good one, Mandy.
Renee on
I’m confused by your comment Mandy. Do you also believe that white should marry white and black should marry black?
Mari on
Mandy, no matter what words you use to communicate it or how delicately you put it, the “races should stay with their own kind” sentiment that you’re ultimately conveying is narrow-minded, dated, and racist. Period.
Anonymous on
When I see this picture, I see a mother who loves her little boy….Mandy, your comment is very disturbing. I pray you will change your way of thinking.
Jessica on
Mandy, can I ask you where you were raised?
Anonymous on
I agree with the majority of the comments. To add my two cents, the fact of the matter is that most people adopting from the U.S. (as Sandra did) want healthy, white newborns. And most of those potential adoptive parents are white. So if only black parents could adopt black babies, then there would be a lot of black babies who wouldn’t get a forever home.
I also want to point out that for a lot of babies and children waiting to be adopted, whether domestic or internationally, having their adoptive parents be the same race as them is the absolute last thing they need to worry about! Some have been abandoned by their birth parents, others have been abused (and sadly, often times that abuse comes in several different forms) and/or neglected, and others are very ill (like Zahara Jolie-Pitt, who very likely wouldn’t have even lived to see her first birthday had Angelina not adopted her).
What those children need is loving parents, period.
Jillian on
Mandy,
Oh wow do i have a lot to say! I understand what you are saying. I think everyone does. We just don’t agree. My Grandmother might. She is 91. But, the year is 2011 and I don’t look at people for the color of the skin, how many limbs they have, if they are disfigured, etc. I look at a person for who they are and that’s what makes me love them! I think your way is a horrible way of thinking and I hope you don’t teach children to treat other children that way. Blaming how you are raised is an excuse. Once you are an adult you can make your own decisions and change your ways.
The most ridiculous thing you said was, if a biracial person and a Caucasian parent a child they will mostly be white like baby spices children. What the heck?! Do you ever leave your house? Not all mixed race children look like baby spices children! Many look predominately black. My friends daughter looks like she has two black parents. Still laughing….baby spice?
I just don’t see how you can be an accepting person if you are against whites adopted non whites and so ons.
Marky on
As the (adoptive) mother of an adult child of another race, I think I can address this issue better than some. My daughter is obviously Asian (not mixed), and is now in her 40s. She was adopted as an infant, and has been raised with both another adopted child (Anglo), and our biological children.
Children usually do not actually understand what adoption means until they are about 8 years old, regardless of whether you tell them their “story” every day, or they are a different color, or whatever. At about that age, they begin to realize exactly what adoption means, and may become more aware of their race, color, or differing characteristics.
My daughter was adopted early on, when few were adopted in this country, and we lived in an area where there were few Asian children, though we sometimes had a Korean neighbor, or perhaps met another couple with a Korean child. Truthfully, while she was growing up, she knew she was adopted because we celebrated that fact since she wasn’t adopted at birth, but she just didn’t seem to be concerned about it. We eat Korean food, she has a traditional Korean dress, and so does her daughter (who looks Hispanic, but her brother looks Asian)and her husband is Anglo.
My daughter doesn’t feel especially connected to Korea; she feels American. She doesn’t struggle with being a different race in our family, or with being adopted; she has friends of all races who are adopted, and it’s not the biggest issue in their lives. They all have families to take care of, children to raise, jobs to do, and lives to live. Adoption is part of their lives, it is not all of their lives, and neither is race.
michelle on
Mandy,
I see where you are coming from and I also am right there with you. My Grandmother always said “Birds of a feather flock together; you don’t see a cardinal with a blue jay”. There are enough whites out here for white people and blacks for black! Before long there because of all the liberalist there won’t be such thing as different races as we’ll all be blended. This is NOT how God intended it to be!
Krissy on
Dear Mandy
I hope you got the attention you craved. I call bs on your comments and you wrote them strictly to get noticed. Move on people, attention seeker is all she is.
Love Sandra and her son! Very cute family!!!!
Serena on
Sandra is so beautiful!
Danuyel on
Now, I am not saying that I agree with Mandy, however I have seen some cases where people have adopted children of different races and it has been harmful.
For instance, a white couple that attends my church adopted a little black girl. While the baby was an infant, there were no real issues, however when she got older and her hair became an issue it was a different story. I am a black woman and myself and several other sisters at the church were asked how to care for her hair but this lady just couldn’t get the hang of it. We offered to do it for her, even gave her contact information for hair dressers that could help her. However, she got fed up and CUT ALL of the little girl’s hair off. I’m talking a 6 year old girl having clippers taken to her head and shaved BALD. Then the “mom” would make her wear head bands.
Now, I am not saying that ALL whites do this, but if this little girl was in a black family, this wouldn’t have been an issue. The little girl suffered, getting picked at in school because whenever her hair began to grow back, her “mother” would shave it off again.
She is now 10 and has the lowest self image of herself. I have to see this little girl every Sunday, and she stares at my girls’ hair and asks me to show her “mother” how to do that. What can I say to her other than I tried but your “mom” wouldn’t listen? (The reason I keep putting mother in ” ” marks is because no real MOTHER, adoptive or otherwise would damage their child this way).
Guinny on
Michelle, so your grandmother basically taught you to ‘choose’ the person you fall in love with? That’s sad….
B on
Michele who are you to say what God intended it to be. It is words like that; that gives Christianity a bad name to those who don’t believe in God. It makes Christians look like a bunch of hypocrites.
It should not matter about Race, it should matter about that person’s morals and ethics.
KatieJ on
Mandy:
Genetics are a tricky thing. I am white, so is my husband. However, our son is dark skinned and has dark curly hair. As if he were bi-racial. All grandparents and even great grandparents involved appear white. However, my husband’s great grandparents (my son’s great great grandparents) are an interracial couple, my husbands grandfather just looks white. Our doctor said while unusual it’s not unheard of.
I almost feel like you are saying we should trade our son in for a white son so that he’s more accepted. Life isn’t Black and white (sorry for the pun) and you, us and our son will have to learn to live in a world full of gray (and blue and green and yellow).
Sarah K. on
Michelle, you have no idea what was intended. The self-righteousness of some people is astounding. You have no idea what amazing people and experiences you’re closing yourself off from. I pity you.
Krissy, I think you’re right. I was the first to respond to Mandy, but after reading her subsequent posts, it seems like she just want to say inflammatory things to get a rise out of people. I remember her posting something similar on another article. She’s either incredibly ignorant or just has too much time on her hands.
JM on
michele do you have enough of an education to understand the difference between a different breed and a different race?
yes birds don’t mate with birds that aren’t the same as them because they are a different breed altogether.
white people and black people only look different but are the same species, and are the same on the inside.
i guess it takes all sorts to make up this world but i didn’t think people like you still existed michele. what an antiquated view. seeing as your so concerned about who breeds with whom maybe you should do us all a favour and not procreate at all. that way hopefully people with your views will slowly die out.
Mish on
Who cares what color skin he has. Some people are so ignorant. I feel bad for people who feel this way.
It shouldn’t matter what color someone’s skin is. All that matters is what’s inside, and if you’re good people or not!!
He’s a baby, and needed a good loving mom. What a lucky little boy. He has a mom who loves him and can give him the world!!
Sheri on
We have a family in our church. Mom and dad are white, and their 2 little girls are black. My youngest son, who was 9 at the time, and I were talking one day and the conversation led to me telling him I didn’t think they would have more kids because the little girls are adopted and their family is complete. He looked at me, astonished, and said, “They are NOT adopted!” I told him they were, and he was so mad at me and wanted to know how I knew they were adopted.
You see, children don’t see color, or disability. They see personalities, love, happiness (and sadness). I wish more adults were more like children, without bias and judgement because of how someone looks.
Jen on
As someone who is adopted, let me just say that finding physical similarities with people, especially those in my family, means a lot to me. This is not at all uncommon with adopted children. So, even though you don’t like Mandy’s comment, and even though parents love adopted children as they would bio children, there is some truth to the fact that many adopted children want to connect with someone who looks like them.
Michelle on
NOT how God intended it to be? Are you kidding me???
I hate that you used “michelle” because that is my name.
We are ALL God’s children. He made us unique but all in his image. How could you possibly think he didn’t want us mixing together? We are different colors, not different species. If we weren’t made to breed together, then God would have made it not possible to do so – like a dog and a cat.
And I’m certainly NOT a liberal. Your ignorance is overwhelming.
Sarah on
Jen, not all adopted children feel the way you do. Just saying…
AmandaK on
I think Louis is so very cute and Sandra seems so happy! I think adoption is a wonderful thing and whatever child you end up with is the child God intended for you to have. Everything happens for a reason. It’s sad that people can be so ignorant and cruel on a subject they obviously know nothing about.
nettrice on
Mandy’s and Michelle’s comments are the reason I look to Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt who make an effort to take their adopted children to their respective native countries; you can be a white adoptive parent and connect your black or brown children to their cultures – we are a global, polycultural society now, so any effort to do this is forward-thinking and progressive.
kimmie on
Thats a wonderful example, Sherri!
Jen on
@Sarah I know and I apologize if it came across as though I was speaking for all adopted children. Absolutely not all adopted children feel that way… that’s why I said “many”. I also think that any loving home is better than no home, but it can be challenging for some adopted children when they feel like they stick out from the rest of their family.
Jessie on
Just when it looked like no one could be more ignorant than Mandy, Michelle comes along!
Hoopla on
And this is one of the reasons I’m not a Christian. I support religion and spirituality and everything because I believe it can bring out the best in people and can really help some people get through hard times. Most of my family is Christian and I have no problem with it, I support them 100%.
What I don’t support is fanatics that believe they are better than people who don’t think or look exactly like them, whether those “different people” are a black, white, gay, straight, Buddhist, Muslim, purple or dinosaur or anything else shouldn’t make a difference in your perception of them. We’re all people, we all have the right to live life as we choose, I just wish more people would choose to live a life devoid of bigotry and ignorance.
cara on
In the UK, there is a big debate about exactly what Mandy is saying. Trained social workers making those decisions. Beautiful kids are left in limbo in foster homes because social services feel they should be placed with similar ethnicity families, while there are families who would give a loving home to a child of any race.
Let’s face it, while it might not be uncommon for 2 white parents to adopt a child of another race, I don’t think I have ever seen a non-white couple adopt a white child.
Sandra’s little boy is adorable and she looks gorgeous and so very happy with her little boy.
cmp on
AWW LIL CUTIE PLEASE SMILE JUST ONCE
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