A sperm bank in the Chicago area made a mistake by inadvertently giving a white woman the sperm of an African-American donor.
Jennifer Cramblett and her partner, Amanda Zinkon, are now suing the Midwest Sperm Bank for “wrongful birth and breach of warranty" after it swapped the vials of donor No. 330 with No. 380. Cramblett only realized the mishap when she sought a second child from the original donor, only to find that it was "from a black man instead of the white man she and her partner had chosen."
Though Cramblett is citing emotional and financial damages, her principle concern is for the ongoing welfare of her mixed-race daughter, Payton, who lives with Cramblett and her partner in a small, "virtually all-white" Ohio town.
While she claims she is not racist, she is anxious about the intolerance her now two-year-old daughter will be subjected to in the homogenous community, as well as the steep learning curve Cramblett faces as a parent. (She gave an example of having to travel to a black community to have Payton's hair done.)
Understandably, Cramblett doesn't want her daughter to be stigmatized at an all-white school. While the bank was clearly negligent, I would argue that any fertility procedure holds the risk of human error. And even though it has all the markings of a Seth Rogen/Vince Vaughn flick, this isn't a comedy. This mom has to move on and move town.
She has a beautiful daughter—not the one she expected—but she can either suck it, hold her head high and educate herself and her community (being a mother in a same-sex partnership, she presumably already has some experience of celebrating difference.)
Failing that, as parents who want the best for their child, should this couple use the lawsuit settlement (assuming they win their case), and move to a more diverse area?
You tell me: Is this mom right to sue the sperm bank?
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