Danny Burke is a Black transracial adoptee who grew up in a White family that loved him—but love alone wasn’t enough to protect him. In this episode, Danny explores what it means to be raised inside Whiteness, navigating the disconnect between familial love and the absence of racial awareness, protection, and accountability.

Drawing from his viral article “What Happens When a Black Transracial Adoptee Realizes That Love Isn’t Protection” and his forthcoming memoir Passing, “Notes Through a Glass Wall,” Danny shares personal reflections and structural insights on how race, politics, and silence shape the adoptee experience. This conversation centers the voices of adoptees while inviting adoptive families—especially White ones—to engage in deeper self-reflection, not with guilt, but with accountability. Equal parts invitation and reckoning, this episode is for parents, professionals, and neighbors alike—anyone ready to confront the myth that love alone can shield a child from systems built to erase them.

About Danny
Danny Burke is a Black transracial adoptee and gay, Army veteran with a graduate degree in organizational psychology, positive leadership, and marketing strategy. He has been recognized at the state level for his work creating safe, affirming spaces for queer people of color and advancing mental health advocacy. A former leadership fellow with Equality California and the UC Riverside Center for Social Innovation, Danny’s passion lies in truth-telling, systems change, and building community through vulnerability, movement, and voice.