ALANA S. NEWMAN remarks on her experience at a recent “third-party reproduction” conference.
Gay male couples are the Number One demographic to be targeted by American surrogacy agencies. This is for several reasons. For starters, partnered gay men are wealthier than any other demographic, earning an average of $116,000 per year per household, which is $21,500 more than the average heterosexual household. Secondly, LGBT individuals and couples are under great social pressure to have children. Their parents want grandchildren. Their friends and colleagues still connect marriage with child-rearing and begin inquiring about plans for parenthood soon after same-sex ceremonies. And some are pressed to acquire children for the sake of the LGBT agenda and the promotion of a la carte families. Children are the latest statement accessories.
India, which was formerly the world’s premier reproductive tourism destination, now bars gay couples and unmarried or un-partnered single-parents-by-choice from using their women as surrogates. These demographics are now “forced” to go elsewhere to procure babies. The United States is an English-speaking nation with get-what-you-pay-for customer-service standards, making it a very appealing market. As a result, American surrogacy agencies are cranking out marketing materials made specifically for gay and single men. This sector of the American reproductive market is booming. . . .
Richard A. Wilson of Grund & Leavitt, a divorce and ART (Assisted Reproductive Technologies) attorney, explained how the divorce revolution has enabled marriage redefinition and its lucrative sister, parenthood redefinition. Thrilled about the end of DOMA, Wilson said with a smile on his face, “Same-sex marriage never would have been possible without the high number of divorces in recent years.” Wilson has apparently profited handsomely from our country’s epidemic of broken families.