Racial bias seen in foster care - Behavior- msnbc.com: BOSTON - The white social worker looked at the dark spots on the black child's body and assumed the youngster had been beaten. The family denied it, but the social worker insisted.
It turned out the child had 'Mongolian spots' — harmless skin blotches common among black children. The social worker's mistake was discovered before the parents got into trouble.
But researchers and policymakers say such episodes help explain why black, Hispanic and other minority children in the United States are far more likely than white youngsters to be taken from their homes and placed in foster care.
