From Wondery, I'm

I'm Lindsay Graham, and this is American Scandal. By the time, by the by the by

by

my

uh

by By the time the full extent of Georgia Tans' illegal adoption network came to light in 1950,

the story had already spanned decades and left behind a trail of broken families, unanswered

questions, and lives permanently altered. While some of the children Tans stole went on to have

happy lives with their new families, others suffered greatly.

Some were forced to serve as laborers. Some were starved and beaten. Some were sexually abused,

even by Tan herself. And at least 19 babies died under Tan's supervision at her Poplar Avenue

orphanage. And in the years after Tan's crimes were revealed, birth and adoption records remained largely sealed,

so few of the parents and children she separated could reconnect.

And Tan and many of her accomplices escaped without facing any significant consequences.

Eventually, their crimes faded from memory.

But this isn't a story that belongs solely to the past.

Similar things are still happening to this day. In Lynchburg, Virginia, there is a maternity home with a thriving and

coercive adoption arm. It's called the Liberty Godparent home, and it was created by the

televangelist preacher Jerry Falwell in 1982 as part of his mission to end abortion.

To save, to help save one child from abortion cost us about $400.

Does a little baby mean that much to you?

Will you become a Liberty Godparent?

...