Surrogacy: A Question of Motherhood and the “Child’s Best Interests”

Abstract

The Second Wave of Feminism of the mid-twentieth century created an ideal landscape to discuss and fight for women’s rights, with surrogacy and other reproductive rights issues as focal points of the movement. In 1985, Mary Beth Whitehead signed a surrogacy contract with Elizabeth and Bill Stern; Whitehead agreed to carry and give birth to a child for the Sterns in return for 10,000 dollars. However, the birth of the child rekindled Whitehead’s intense motherly instincts, and she battled a series of contradicting thoughts, for she understood that she had chosen to sign the contract and give the baby to the Sterns. In the days after the birth, Whitehead faced a choice that could alter the life of the child: should she keep or give up the baby to the Sterns? By examining the financial incentives for pursuing a surrogacy agreement, along with the competing arguments of what it means to be a mother, this case explores the validity of surrogacy contracts and the value of reproductive rights in American society.