"Do not make permanent decisions on the basis of temporary emotions."
Wednesday, April 02, 2008
Wombs for Rent
Oops. I was going to follow my "Lend out your babies" post with discussion of recent articles on surrogacy. But, I ran out of steam and ran out of space. Surrogacy is whole separate can of worms to open anyways!
I actually did a little research on surrogacy b/c of all of the recent articles. I'm still not sure that it's fair to say that surrogate mothers are exploited, because (as far as I can tell) they aren't forced to carry someone else's child, and they do ultimately benefit from the service. Granted, it's strange to describe pregnancy as a service.
I find it interesting that people will go to such lengths to have their own biological children, rather than adopt. Both paths are very pricey, especially if you insist on a newborn or infant (particularly a *white* newborn or infant).
I have to admit that the idea of acting as a surrogate for someone doesn't seem so crazy. I don't know that I would do it--for a number of reasons that I won't list here--but I can see the appeal.
There's a new Tina Fey/Amy Poehler movie coming out in which Poehler's character is a poor, ignorant, trashy woman who acts as a surrogate for Fey's educated, sophisticated, (presumably) wealthy character. There have been lots of complaints about this portrayal of surrogacy because, for the most part, agencies (and potential parents) are very strict about their criteria for who can be a surrogate. Women who receive government assistance, for instance, and typically not eligible--because they don't want money to be the primary motivator.
Okay, this went on much longer than I planned. Sorry.
1 comment:
I actually did a little research on surrogacy b/c of all of the recent articles. I'm still not sure that it's fair to say that surrogate mothers are exploited, because (as far as I can tell) they aren't forced to carry someone else's child, and they do ultimately benefit from the service. Granted, it's strange to describe pregnancy as a service.
I find it interesting that people will go to such lengths to have their own biological children, rather than adopt. Both paths are very pricey, especially if you insist on a newborn or infant (particularly a *white* newborn or infant).
I have to admit that the idea of acting as a surrogate for someone doesn't seem so crazy. I don't know that I would do it--for a number of reasons that I won't list here--but I can see the appeal.
There's a new Tina Fey/Amy Poehler movie coming out in which Poehler's character is a poor, ignorant, trashy woman who acts as a surrogate for Fey's educated, sophisticated, (presumably) wealthy character. There have been lots of complaints about this portrayal of surrogacy because, for the most part, agencies (and potential parents) are very strict about their criteria for who can be a surrogate. Women who receive government assistance, for instance, and typically not eligible--because they don't want money to be the primary motivator.
Okay, this went on much longer than I planned. Sorry.
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