The Build-A-Child Market: The Problematic Promulgation of Commercial Surrogacy

Surrogacy is an arrangement for a woman to become pregnant, carry, and deliver a child on behalf of intended parents. Surrogacy is often seen as a neutral facet of family-building. However, the proliferation of commercial surrogacy has birthed an industry which prioritizes profits over the protections of children. This reality is easily revealed through contemplation of existing laws, specifically those which regulate adoption. In comparison to the institution of adoption, the surrogacy industry is unregulated and prone to abuse. Furthermore, the patchwork of state laws across the United States allow for a chaotic free-for-all in which children are disregarded or taken advantage of. The worrying popularization of commercial surrogacy and the subsequent loopholes in children's protections come from a prevailing eugenics ideology and arrive as a consequence of commodification.