voice
sperm. The Department of Health would need to
change the law before this procedure was offered in
British fertility clinics, and given the ethical diffi culties
with such a process, this is unlikely to happen in the
near future.
But even if it were scientifi cally and legally possible
to make sperm with female skin cells, should the
lesbian community really be considering the
prospect of living in a matriarchal society? If we do
eventually eradicate the need for men, it does not
mean that we should not require male roles and
infl uences in our own or our child’s life. Remember,
too, that many of the children born into a female
community would grow up to be heterosexual, and
deserve the option to be with the opposite sex if
they so desire.
Social implications aside, Trevor Stammers, a GP
and lecturer in healthcare ethics at St Mary’s
University College points out a further potential
danger: “Can you imagine a world where with some
Sellotape on someone’s skin as they sleep, you could
make them a father of hundreds of children around
the world if you had the money and will?” he asked in
The Times newspaper.
33
At the moment, the process of artifi cially
producing sperm remains at a very early stage, and
some fertility scientists are sceptical of what Karim
Nayernia claims to have achieved. Allan Pacey, a
lecturer in Andrology at Sheffi eld University, also told
The Times: “It is monumental if it has been done. The
slightly negative side is that I am not yet convinced
that they have done it. I have read the paper they
have published and I just did not think there was
enough evidence as yet to say the cells they
produced in the lab are genuine.”
However, even if use of this technique becomes
common among lesbians, most heterosexual
women would still be likely to reproduce with the
natural or artifi cial sperm of a male partner, meaning
that society may not change dramatically. Lesbians,
however, would be able to enjoy parenting in an
entirely new – and equal – way.
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