Michael Oher, the subject of The Blind Side, ignited a firestorm of conversation around race, adoption, and exploitation when he dropped a bombshell lawsuit this week alleging that the family depicted in the Oscar-winning film profited handsomely off his life story without ever actually adopting him. The former NFL lineman alleges that, shortly after he turned 18, Sean and Leigh Anne Tuohy tricked him into a conservatorship arrangement that allowed for the Tuohys to do business in Oher’s name and keep the fruits of The Blind Side’s commercial success for themselves. Now 37, Oher says he was disheartened to learn he was never formally adopted by the Touhys. “This is a difficult situation for my family and me,” he said in a statement. Since Oher came forward with this new side of the once picture-perfect story, the pushback against his claims has been swift.

For Angela Tucker, who is Black and was adopted by a white couple as a baby, it has been especially challenging to hear people questioning Oher’s claims or suggesting he should be grateful for the Tuohys’ support, even if they publicly misrepresented their relationship. At the link in bio, Tucker, a transracial adoptee and the author of “You Should Be Grateful,” Tucker spoke with the Cut about the cultural impact of The Blind Side, why we rarely hear adoptees’ perspectives in the media, and how identifying as adoptive parents may insulate people from closer scrutiny.

Image: Getty