Alex Kuczynski, New York Times style writer and the author of Beauty Junkies: Inside Our $15 Billion Obsession with Cosmetic Surgery (Doubleday, 2006), talks about her recent NYT Magazine article "Her Body, My Baby" and her experience having a child through a surrogate.
Comments [6]
Just for a moment, imagine that pro-life laws and practice were in place. The IVF procedures would not be legal, since each embryo is a human being and can not be destroyed. The infertile rate is about 1-2% of couples. But abortion would be illegal. So, there would be many women who would be giving up their children for adoption: it would be inexpensive, and available. We've got things upside-down.
$25,000 not the bailiwick of the super wealthy? Perhaps just the somewhat wealthy? How many women in this city support children with an income less than $25,000 a year? A lot.
I see a nightmarish world in which the extremely wealthy -- to which Alex Kuczynski and her hedge-fund millionaire husband definitely belong -- pay bargain prices to use the bodies of financially needier women to get their babies. Babies are after all the latest socialite accessory. What's to stop wealthy women from hiring surrogates simply so that they won't need to get stretch marks? Think of all the immigrant women and young college women who succumb to this demanding and exploitative 'job.' Are surrogates the new nannies?
Twice she mentioned "a baby that looks like us" as a motivating factor. I question the ethics of a parent who places more importance on having a child that looks like them than just having a child.
This is one of the stories you picked as your favorite of the year to air? Wow! Pick more stories next time that don't glorify someone who hasn't even a clue about her own Classism and Racism. I guess she missed that 101 class at William and Mary.
I do outreach for The New York Branch of International Dyslexia Association, including free workshops for parents in the New York area. I can be reached at 212-691-1930, ext 15 and would love to speak on your show (for your show only my cell- 917-627-8457)- I have tried to call in on this before and am calling now but not getting through. There is a huge lack of info about dyslexia among all people - both parents and teachers. If a child is evaluated, the DOE does not diagnosis dyslexia, but learning disability, so parents have even less awareness of what they are dealing with. But 20% of the population is dyslexic; 85% of people with a learning disability have dyslexia. It is a real and huge issue that is incredibly frustrating in the public schools. Multisensory teaching is the main answer
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