A Melbourne influencer has publicly defended her decision to go public with her choice to fly to the US to select her baby’s sex.
Caitlyn Bailey, who has two boys and a girl, flew to the US and paid $45,000 to ensure her next pregnancy, conceived through IVF, would be another girl.
The single mum has a following of more than 60,000 users on Instagram and uses her platform to promote her lifestyle and parenting journey.
Taking to social media today, Bailey told her followers she decided to share her story to help other parents in a similar predicament.
“This sort of thing makes me really anxious. I don’t like conflict, I don’t like drama I don’t like confrontation,” she said.
“I chose to share my story and my journey purely because I thought if there’s people out there that it could potentially help and not feel so alone, that’s why I shared it.
“I didn’t share it to start online arguments or have you know troll conversations, it’s just, it makes me feel sick to my stomach to think about the negative side of things, I’m all about positivity.”
IVF sex selection is banned in Australia and clinics which offer the service face jail time.
Other Australian mums have previously come forward with their decisions to travel overseas to choose their baby’s sex, usually to ensure a balance in the sex ratio of their children.
Monash University human rights law professor Paula Gerber personally condemned the practice, which has also been denounced by multiple global human rights watchdogs.
“The UN has come out very strongly, as has the World Health Organisation, and said sex selection is not allowed for mere preferences, because invariably it is a preference for sons in a lot of cultures, and that just reinforces gender stereotypes and sends that message that women and daughters are less valued,” Gerber said.
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“Personally I don’t agree with it. I think choosing the sex of your child is really wrong ethically, morally and legally.
“It sends a message that you’re only going to conditionally love this child because they are a particular sex.
“What if that child ends up being intersex or trans? Is your love for them then cease?”
Despite the UN’s strong stance on the issue, several nations across the globe allow the practice within domestic law.
“The US is a bit laissez-faire and it’s certainly permitted there. Mexico, Asia are cheaper options, Cyprus, a lot of countries do say we will do it if you’re prepared to pay for it,” Gerber said.
IVF sex selection has been illegal in Australia since 2004 and public sentiment seems to align with the law.
“Every now and then we do surveys, to see what societal attitudes are and overwhelmingly, more than 80 per cent of people say ‘no, this is a commodification of children. This is a slippery slope towards designer babies we don’t want that, we are going to value every child regardless of what sex they are’,” Gerber said.
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