A. In Texas

In Texas, as compared to children of other races:

• African American children are more likely to be removed;
• African American children are least likely to return home;
• African American children are less likely to exit to reunification and more likely to exit to emancipation;
• African American child have the longest wait to exiting foster care; and
• For Native American children in the care of CPS, the trends and patterns are unstable due to the low numbers.  CPS and the Children’s Commission continue to work with the tribal communities to address how to best meet the needs of the community.[13]

DFPS data from FY2015 shows African American children were much more likely than Anglo or Hispanic children to be reported as victims of child abuse or neglect and are removed from their families at almost twice the rate of the general population. African American children comprised 11.4% of the general child population of Texas but accounted for almost 20.7% of all children awaiting adoption. Even when other factors are taken into account, African American children spend more time in foster care, or other substitute care, are less likely to go home to their parents, and wait longer for adoption.

While African American and American Indian children are overrepresented in foster care, White children are proportionately represented and Hispanic children are underrepresented. However, most Hispanic children wait longer than White children to be adopted.[14]