N'est pas mère qui veut [Not Just Anyone can be a Mother: The Paradox of International Adoptions]

Abstract

The circulation of children between birthmothers and adoptive parents raises questions on the diversity of gender-systems and misrecognized social inequalities. We reflect on the paradox that interlocks two gender-systems : in India where unmarried women are coerced to renounce to (social) maternity, and in the West where women who participate in the labor market postpone the conception of their first child which increases the risk of reduced fertility and opens up the way to adoption. Our field research in Tamil Nadu (India) among birthmothers shows how the production of adoptable children is embedded in complex power relations.