The commodification of family : the multilayered harms of surrogacy

Abstract

Surrogacy is a billion-dollar industry, which is growing due to demand. People who cannot have children for medical, physical, or social reasons are resorting to this industry in the hope of acquiring tailor-made children who will satisfy their needs. Their need however leads to the commodification and exploitation of the people who produce the biomaterial needed for this task and, the product itself, the children born. This chapter will underline that UN conventions and international treaties are being undermined in the process and will delineate the medical, ethical, and/or emotional effect ART and surrogacy have on gamete donors, the surrogate mother, and the children in question. The fear is that the push for regulating this industry, by addressing limping parenthood, will help legitimize and promote this industry.