Fact Sheet #12

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Fact Sheet #12: SOCIAL WORKERS' OPINIONS OF UNMARRIED MOTHERS

Jane Rowe, a leading Social Worker, Tutor and author, had extremely radical views on unmarried mothers, and was considered an expert on all aspects of adoption.

Rowe’s 1966 book ‘Parents Children and Adoption’ was widely advertised as an authoritive textbook on adoption and was intended for those working in the field of adoption.

Rowe made her views clear when she wrote:

‘White girls who have illegitimate babies by coloured men are often emotionally ill as well as socially defiant.’

Rowe’s attitude to and opinion of unmarried mothers is revealed in her teaching methods and explicit warnings to Adoption Workers:

‘Its easy to be misled by an unmarried mother's apparently great love for her baby… assess whether this love is true maternal feelings, or the childish love of a little girl for her doll, her possession, something she has made.’

‘Older unmarried mothers tend to be even more deeply troubled people than their teenage counterparts.’

‘Married women having out of wedlock children tend to be rather seriously disturbed people.’

Rowe worked for a time in America and expressed her opinion of unmarried mothers there:

‘The American middle-class girl flouting the conventions by an illegitimate pregnancy may well be emotionally sicker than her English working-class cousins.’

Jane Rowe exercised considerable influence in her role as Tutor with the private sector Conference for Societies Registered for Adoption which ran training courses on adoption pratice and procedure, issued adoption related publications and held conferences on adoption.

The only organisation of its kind in Britain, its title was extremely misleading. More than 80 Local Authorities registered for adoption were excluded. Only those in the private sector were eligible to join.

There was formidable opposition in the private Church run Unmarried Mothers Homes to unmarried mothers keeping their babies. They were at the mercy of adoption professionals who shared the views and opinions of Jane Rowe.

Unmarried mothers were coerced out of their babies.
Their babies were labelled unwanted.
The adopters were commended for rescuing them.

It would be difficult to imagine a greater abuse of power and betrayal of trust.