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Former D.C. foster youths write a bill to change D.C. law
In the windowless D.C. Council hearing room, the college freshman took a breath before trying to explain how much pressure she felt as a foster youth nearing adulthood.
Marea was 18, three years from aging out of the foster care system and living on her own. If she wanted support, she had three options, but none of them felt right. She could seek adoption, but that would mean severing legal ties to her mother and younger brother forever. Guardianship would be temporary, lasting only until her 21st birthday. And as much as she loved her mother, she knew she could not return to live with her.