This chapter contextualizes the shifting popular and scientific discourses of race since the mid-twentieth century by analyzing databases of egg donors and surrogates created by agencies to connect intended parents with the women who provide these services. Selected from a list curated by the American Society for Reproductive Medicine and RESOLVE: The National Infertility Association, agencies are contrasted based on their representation of traits like the race and ethnicity of surrogates and egg donors. Reproductive technologies demonstrate that despite scientific debates, race-based medicines continue to promote and reflect a popular understanding of distinct biological races. Thus, the egg donor and surrogacy databases built by ART clinics reflect often-unspoken assumptions about race and heritability.
Egg-Donor Price Fixing and Kamakahi v. American Society for Reproductive Medicine