Last year, a couple from Australia abandoned one of the twin newborns they had commissioned from Pattharamon Chanbua, a surrogate from Thailand. As the international media recounted, the surrogate mother’s family then embraced the child, who has Down’s Syndrome and came to be known as Baby Gammy. Thousands of dollars in donations poured in.

After the international coverage, Gammy — who remains with his “surrogate” mother — was granted Australian citizenship. Because he emerged from Chanbua’s womb, however, Gammy was legally a Thai citizen as well.

The case was more than grist for the tabloid mill. It highlighted the shortcomings of the standard discourse around surrogacy, forcing commentators to grapple with the role of prospective parents in perpetuating inequality, and the possibility that surrogacy presents many of the same moral problems as the family proper.