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Queer decisions: Racial matching among gay male intended parents.

Published version
Peer-reviewed

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Authors

Twine, France Winddance 

Abstract

How does race and location shape the reproductive decisions of gay men who are intended parents? In this article, we propose the concept of strategic racialization to characterize the ways in which gay male parents employ racial matching in their selection of egg donors and surrogates in the United States and United Kingdom. We argue that racial matching is a strategy of stigma management. This study draws upon interview data from 40 gay male couples who formed families through surrogacy. We find that pre-conception fathers seek racialized resemblance to reinforce kinship between themselves and their children. In California and England, gay men seeking donor eggs engage in racial matching, which reveals that the racialized biogenetic model of kinship remains dominant. This study makes a significant contribution to the literature on race and queer family formation.

Description

Peer reviewed: True


Funder: FP7 People: Marie-Curie Actions; FundRef: https://doi.org/10.13039/100011264; Grant(s): Grant no.629341, FP7-PEOPLE-2013-IOF

Keywords

Special Issue Articles, California, England, kinship, LGBTQ parents, queer studies, race, surrogacy

Journal Title

Int J Comp Sociol

Conference Name

Journal ISSN

0020-7152
1745-2554

Volume Title

63

Publisher

SAGE Publications
Sponsorship
Wellcome Trust (209829/Z/17/Z)
European Commission (629341)
Wellcome Trust (100606/Z/12/Z)