Even after his daughter was stolen from him and placed for adoption against his choice, Chris Emanuel never stopped loving her.
The 25-year-old father fought the court at every turn, but it was a struggle he could hardly hope to prevail in.
Then, something lovely occurred. It is the tale of a man who risked all in the fight for fathers’ rights.
When Emanuel’s girlfriend became pregnant, everything began.
Emanuel’s girlfriend was unique from some of the other ladies he had dated in the past; they lived in Aiken, South Carolina. She was a fancy lady, but was still down to hang out and play pool, he told ABC News. She also has the ability to ride horses better than anyone.
Emanuel remarked, “I never met someone of that sort before, but I certainly loved the moments that we had.
Emanuel was ecstatic to learn that his partner was expecting a child.
Despite the fact that the two of them had quite different upbringings, he was totally prepared to try and make it work. They even began talking about getting married.
“I was joyful; who wouldn’t be? I was planning to be there since it was my first child, you know. Emanuel declared, “We’re going to do all we can.
Not everyone, though, was as pleased with the circumstances as he was.
Emanuel suspected his race may have been a factor when a long-awaited reunion between the two families didn’t go as planned.
“Like hearing about racism but experiencing it, it’s completely different. Emanuel compared it as getting hit in the gut. The absurd thing is that she guaranteed me we would raise our child together after we parted.
Whatever commitments the two of them had made to one another were ultimately meaningless.
Emanuel’s girlfriend gave birth to his daughter and gave her up for adoption without consulting him. They pledged to let him know when the kid will be born so he could be present. He didn’t really find out about the birth until a week later when a messenger showed up at his door to give him an update.
He was informed that the child had been born and was already scheduled for adoption by a family in another state.
The paperwork had already been completed, so that was it. Emanuel’s hopes of having children were abruptly dashed.
It was snatched from me that my daughter. I stood up for my rights. My rights were taken away. Not only that, but I now have to earn my daughter’s trust, Emanuel said.
The horror really started at that point.
The idea that the baby’s father was already gone was conveyed to the potential adoptive family, but in Emanuel’s opinion, nothing could be farther from the reality. Even if he wished he could be a parent, it was against the law. Emanuel fought in court for three months until he was eventually successful in bringing his daughter home.
It was a protracted conflict.
When dads try to obtain custody in court, things frequently go horribly wrong. Despite the fact that it doesn’t seem like it after everything he’s been through, Emanuel was one of the fortunate ones.
We can’t even begin to fathom how stressful and expensive that must have been for everyone concerned. Fighting it out in family court and paying for attorneys is not renowned for being inexpensive.
All Emanuel could manage was to collapse to his knees, where he sobbed and praised God for bringing his daughter home since all he needed was for her to be in his arms.
No one would have ever approached Emanuel about it if he hadn’t had the foresight to add his name on the state’s responsible father register before the birth. He would have been left in the dark entirely.
Below, you can see the complete news report on the father’s battle to get back his daughter.
