Banished Babies: The Secret History of Ireland's Baby Export Business [Paperback]

Mike Milotte (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 1, 1997

Mike Milotte's damning expose of Church-State collusion in banishing thousands of vulnerable 'illegitimate' children from Ireland in the 1950s and 60s was first published to critical acclaim in 1997, and quickly achieved iconic status. For this new, updated, and expanded edition, the author has added previously untold personal stories from some of the 'banished babies' he met in the intervening period - stories that further illuminate the murky shadows of this official, but long-concealed child-export business. The book also examines the Irish State's failure to fulfill promises - made in the wake of the book's first appearance - to adequately facilitate search and reunion among the 'banished babies' and their natural parents.

--This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

Since this story broke in 1996, the Irish media have been chasing down details of the "export" --primarily to the U.S.--of 2,000-plus infants and toddlers born to unmarried Irish mothers between the late '40s and the mid-'70s. Reporter Milotte did a TV documentary on the subject; his book incorporates new archival material released by the Irish government and the Catholic Church, as well as three involving case studies of efforts by adoptees or the mothers who reluctantly gave them up to get back together. At mid-century, both church and state in Ireland stressed shame, secrecy, and the religion of adoptive parents over all other considerations; only in the mid-'50s did Eire require confirmation that proposed parents could provide a healthy (as well as a Catholic) home for Irish kids, and several money-based schemes slipped through the Republic's lax rules. An enlightening international sidebar to studies of the consequences of open versus closed adoption. Mary Carroll

Product Details

• Paperback: 224 pages
• Publisher: New Island Books (January 1, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1874597537
• ISBN-13: 978-1874597537
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.5 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.1 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,023,364 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

23 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Heartbreaking story with no happy endings., February 17, 1999

By 

G. Straut (Denver, Colorado) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Banished Babies: The Secret History of Ireland's Baby Export Business (Paperback)

I am one of the 'Banished Babies'. I was born at Bessboro Abbey in 1955 and met my birth mother for the first time in December of 1998. My heart went out to her and reading Mike Milotte's book made me very angry that she had been put through such pain. There is no way to retrieve the forty years she lost nor is there any way to assuage the guilt and pain she felt.

My only complaint with the book is that it contains no happy endings. My twin brother and I (we were kept together) came to the US in January of 1958. We have had at least a normal life. I would call it a great life. We both have good marriages (I have two beautiful children) and rewarding careers. Both of us are college educated and I have a graduate degree.

Had I not known I was adopted, it would have made no difference. I never felt different or that I was not part of my family. I knew I was adopted and thought I was special. I didn't know all the details until later.

I now know that my mother suffered very much and I am sad and angry--but I did not suffer. 'Banished Babies' doesn't include any success stories. While the Church and the Irish government were guilty of lying and then compounding the lies by refusing to cooperate with the children searching for their mothers, neither institution has a patent on such behavior. Recent scandals in Washington demonstrate that for all to see.

I do not excuse the Church or the Irish government, but chronicling only the negative of the story doesn't make it more compelling; only less balanced. The atmosphere of intolerance towards sex and unwed mothers in Ireland in the fifties (the US wasn't that much different) also contributed to the scandal.

In spite of the shortcomings, Banished Babies helped expose the scandal and may have inspired people to find each other. My brother and I have sent copies to our birth mother and friends and family. The book will help in the healing process.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Banished Babies, November 29, 2010

By 

mjc - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Banished Babies: The Secret History of Ireland's Baby Export Business (Paperback)

I read about this book in Irish America Magazine. Despite the fact that I paid way too much for this book!! the original cost was 7 pounds, I paid over 40 american dollars I am not sorry I ordered and read the book, I am sorry that I paid so much!!

I started the book and finished it within 48hrs of starting. At times while reading I felt as if I was reading a text book, but still could not put it down. If you are interested in the workings of the Catholic Church and or in the treatment of unwed mothers in Ireland during the 50's and 60's this is the book for you.

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Another Example of Catholic Secrecy, December 8, 2008

By 

Leah (Newark, DE) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Banished Babies: The Secret History of Ireland's Baby Export Business (Paperback)

A pattern is emerging within the sacred walls of the Catholic Church. It seems that if you have sinned, no one ever need know about your sin. These poor women had their infants snatched from their arms in order that they could "get on with their lives" just as so many priests were shuffled from place to place so that they could "get on with their lives." In both cases, no one ever need know.

For the priests, someone certainly should have known. For the women, they were being punished for the perfectly natural human acts that never should have been categorized as sin.