The Myth of the Surrogate Mother
Accept no substitute.
In 2005, twin girls were born prematurely to an African-American surrogate mother in Indiana. Their biological mother was an anonymous white egg donor. The biological father was a white sperm donor from California. Their adoptive father, the one who had bought the eggs, sperm, and the surrogate, was a mentally disturbed gay teacher’s aide in his sixties named Stephen Melinger.
When Melinger arrived at the hospital to retrieve his medically fragile babies, the nurses became alarmed, since his clothing was covered in bird droppings—and he had his pet birds sitting on his shoulders.
Later, neighbors reported the little girls outside in the cold, dirty and dressed for warm weather. The case received national coverage as what turned out to be a fraudulent adoption worked its way through the child welfare courts. Even the New York Times reported on it:
“The complaint prompted a review by the New Jersey Department of Youth and Family Services, which sent a worker the next day …
