Why strawberry blonde stood out in her Mexican family (hospital baby switch)

The Telegraph, London via SMH | December 10, 2003 | Charles Laurence in New York

[dead]

For as long as she could remember Debra DeLay - a tall strawberry blonde with blue eyes - struggled to work out why she looked so different from her family of short, dark-haired Mexicans. "I was the only white child on that whole side of town," she remembers. "I just didn't fit in."

Today, she says: "I knew all along that I wasn't with the right family." But it took more than 40 years to find out Debra had been switched at birth.

Instead of leaving with her biological parents, James and Jean Morgan, she went home from the hospital in Gillette, Wyoming, with Polly Munoz, from a family of immigrants from Mexico. Meanwhile, Ms Munoz's baby, Shirley, was swept up into the Morgans' tight-knit Irish-American family, one of eight siblings.

Both grew up wanting to belong but feeling that they never fitted. Instead, each lived someone else's life. Now they are each suing the company that ran Campbell County Memorial hospital, where they were born in 1958. They discovered their true identities only after Mr Morgan - who had always suspected that Shirley might not be his real daughter - suffered a heart attack two years ago. From his hospital bed, he revealed his fears to another daughter, Kathie.

Kathie organised DNA tests and Shirley was not related to her parents. She did not, after all, owe her complexion and hair colour to a French-Canadian grandmother. That could mean only that there was, as Mr Morgan had always feared, another misidentified child.

Kathie searched for her biological sister, scouring the hospital's birth records for a second girl born the same day and then school year books.

Her persistence paid off: she discovered 17-year-old Polly Munoz in a 1958 high school yearbook. Looking at the picture of the smiling schoolgirl, Kathie knew that she had found Shirley's biological mother.

The hunt for Polly, and the woman she thought was her daughter, continued with the help of a "confidential intermediary". Within six hours, she had found Debra DeLay in Phoenix, Arizona. "I called her and told her that she and another child were switched at birth," the intermediary recalled. "There was dead silence on the phone."

Polly Munoz had always told her daughter that she took after her father, a sailor with Irish roots called Daniel Dooley. In a recent television documentary, Debra DeLay struggled to explain the emotional trauma caused by the mistake in the maternity ward. "When I got that phone call I was in shock," she said. "I mean, after 43 years, you just discover who you are?"

Mr Morgan described how Debra rushed into his arms. "She came flying in here and all heaven broke loose," he said. They insist they have "gained" a daughter without losing Shirley. "We love both girls. We love them very much," Mr Morgan said.

[JennysCool]

[cajungirl]

If I were a Mexican and got a strawberry blonde tall girl for a child, I think I might have investigated alot earlier. Gee whiz!

[coloradan]

From short, dark haired parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, and siblings?

[<1/1,000,000th%]

I was present when all 3 of my kids were born and accompanied them to the nursery. There's no way they could've been switched.

[Paradox]

I watched my kid get born, and kept an eye on him as long as I could. I identified whatever birthmarks and characteristics I could before I let them out of my sight. My wife insisted :)

Anyways, its not too hard to mistake them as mine, both boys have a certain "look" to them. The nurses all commented about it. (fairly prominent eyebrow ridge, along with a "what you lookin at, punk?" look....)

[ElkGroveDan]

Ditto, I watched that bracelet go on their ankles and memorized the number, checked that it matched the one on my wrist AND followed them in for the shots and cleanup. As a result they all have my good looks and Irish sense of humor (not sure where the stubborn tempers come from though).

[Tacis]

No, not so. They'd know that Presidente Fox pays a premium for blond lap dancers in Tijuana. The home grown ones are so much cheaper than the imports so the profits are higher.

[Norse]

They are decendants of the Spaniards as opposed to most Mexicans who are basically Indians. There are actually a lot of white Mexicans and white people throughout Latin America.

Latino is not a race.

[Eric in the Ozarks]

There are many light skinned Mexicanos. Not all are Indios. One of the profs I had at the Tech in Monterrey looked very Irish, and was.

[Always Right]

Yeah, it did reminded me of the line "I was born a poor black child."

[Evil Inc]

A genetic test can show your ethnic heritage. You would be surprised at what you find. Amazing number of people think they are all white, but find maybe 7 percent east asian or AmerIndian or what not. A lot of mixing fades from memory in a generation or two. A lot of europeans have a little mongol in them. A lot of Blacks are part white/Indian. A lot of blacks have arab connections. A lot of Italians are part black due to occupation by the Moors or some such. It is really interesting how the human race has developed, but there is only one race---human or homo sapien.

[vharlow]

And I have been watching Mexican telenovelas on Univision for years now, and few of the actors are dark skinned. Most of the TV stars are obviously of European origin..... Many Spanish settlers and European settlers of Mexico and Central America did not mingle with the indians.

[autoresponder]

Odd affirmative action exception

Brazilians are not covered as "hispanics"

All other South American and Central Americans are "hispanics"

Even the Germans in Argentina I suppose

What moron came up with that?

Cannot cite the source and date but it was on FR after the SCOTUS/U of Michigan Law School nutcase decision

Any corrections or additions welcome

[isthisnickcool]

He hates these cans! Stay away from the cans!

Image, movie and audio here.

[joesnuffy]

Pick any name from Spain...and if it your familes surname and you put in on a college app
you are now a minority and entitled...

Friends from my small northern Wi hometown have a Spainish sounding last name...their youngest went to a small public college and gets a minority scholarship and affirmative action grants for tuition and books and...affirmative action points for govt employment...

Their family laughs and thinks this is great...they look at it like they are finally getting some tax money back...

[Norse]

>What moron came up with that?

LOL...not sure. But a year ago I did date a girl from Argentina who was German and she was amazing. Her brother was also named "German." Seriously, that was his name. And they looked it too.

Affirmative action sucks.