This article from the New York Times describes how "relative caregiving is ingrained in Black households and a main reason for the low number of formal adoptions [among Black families in the United States]."
"Black families often opt for informal arrangements sans social workers, termination of parental rights and lawyers," the article continues. "In general, kinship care reduces stress, promotes stability and eases the transition from living with parents to a different yet familiar environment."
The author speaks of personal experience in kinship care, noting that "once I went to live with my grandparents at the age of 9, I essentially became their daughter. They made every decision regarding my education, vacations, peer groups and discipline. There was a safety to the routine that my grandparents provided, and I blossomed under their watch."