Children by design: a deaf lesbian couple's decision to intentionally conceive deaf children reignites the debate over "designer" babies. (Parenting).It was a simple profile on one family, but The Washington Post Magazine's March 31 feature on partners Sharon Duchesneau and Candace McCullough and their two children set off a worldwide debate. Not because of the women's sexual orientation sexual orientation n. The direction of one's sexual interest toward members of the same, opposite, or both sexes, especially a direction seen to be dictated by physiologic rather than sociologic forces. but because Duchesneau and McCullough, who are both deaf, sought a deaf sperm donor to father their daughter, Jehanne, now 5 years old, and son, Gauvin, 6 months. As a result, Jehanne is deaf, and Gauvin is deaf in one ear and has severe hearing loss in the other. And that's what both mothers--who consider their deafness an identity, not a disability--intended. Since the Post magazine story, Duchesneau and McCullough, who live in the Washington, D.C., suburb of North Bethesda, Md., have tried to avoid the press, and they declined to be interviewed for this story. But public reaction has been swift and sharp. Conservative reaction was typified by the Traditional Values Coalition The Traditional Values Coalition is a Christian Right organization that claims to represent over 43,000 conservative Christian churches throughout the United States of America. Headquartered in Washington, D.C. , which called Gauvin a "victim of the homosexual agenda The homosexual agenda (or the gay agenda) is a term used by some social conservatives in the United States to describe the goal of increasing LGBT acceptance and equality through public policies, media exposure, and cultural change. ." Most pundits, however, focused on what they consider a bioethical matter--the ever-increasing ability of parents to design a baby of their choice. That can mean making sure the baby is deaf or, with an option that seems more of a possibility every day, making sure the baby is heterosexual. "There are some striking parallels between deafness and gayness and attitudes toward `cure' or `prevention,'" said retired neuroscientist Simon LeVay, who reported in 1991 that gay men have a smaller hypothalamus hypothalamus (hī'pəthăl`əməs), an important supervisory center in the brain, rich in ganglia, nerve fibers, and synaptic connections. It is composed of several sections called nuclei, each of which controls a specific function. than straight men. In an interview with The Advocate, LeVay cited the debate over cochlear cochlear pertaining to or emanating from the cochlea. cochlear duct the coiled portion of the membranous labyrinth located inside the cochlea; contains endolymph. cochlear nerve see Table 14. implants--which restore some hearing to deaf people This is an incomplete list of notable deaf people. Important historical figures in deaf history and culture The idea that a person who was deaf could achieve a notable or distinguished status was not common until the latter half of the 18th century, when Abbé Charles-Michel de , a technique protested by deaf activists--as similar to the debate over whether sexual orientation can, or should, be changed. Nevertheless, LeVay, who is gay, said he would respect a parent's decision to intentionally have a gay child or avoid having one, when modern science makes that option available. "My hope," he said, "is that we can create a society where few people will want to do either of these things "These Things" is an EP by She Wants Revenge, released in 2005 by Perfect Kiss, a subsidiary of Geffen Records. Music Video The music video stars Shirley Manson, lead singer of the band Garbage. Track Listing 1. "These Things [Radio Edit]" - 3:17 2. ." |
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