Who Is the Mother? Surrogacy Battle Erupts After Woman Refuses Abortion

Alaskan surrogate mother McKenna West refused to undergo an abortion requested by the child’s biological parents after a 20-week ultrasound showed the baby had a severe heart condition, later identified as hypoplastic left heart syndrome.

West traveled to Texas to protect the child after learning that the biological parents, Nausheen Gilkar and Omar Ahmed, wished to abort the baby. On Aug. 12, the baby, whom West refers to as Gabriel and Gilkar and Ahmed refer to as Rumi, was born and received specialized care at a hospital in Dallas. On Monday, Aug. 17, the baby underwent a successful heart surgery, the first of many he will have to undergo throughout his life.

West, a nurse herself, said in an interview with the pro-life group Live Action that she personally knows a 15-year-old girl who has hypoplastic left heart syndrome and has successfully managed the health challenges. West cited her story as proof that this diagnosis is not hopeless.

However, originally, when the biological parents first requested an abortion. West said she felt pressured to proceed with their wishes, especially considering financial penalties for breaching her surrogacy contract, a fine of $200,000 in damages.

“It was a horrible, trapped feeling,” West said. “I felt like I didn’t have a say. In order for it to be done, I would have to be a willing participant. I would be the one signing the consent papers at the abortion clinic, and I didn’t think I could live with myself doing that.”

But with the financial and legal support of her brother, Live Action, and Alliance Defending Freedom, West ultimately decided to challenge Gilkar and Ahmed over custody and medical care of the child in her womb.

After West moved to Texas, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton intervened, securing an emergency court order just a day before West gave birth to ensure the baby received life-sustaining treatment at the hospital. The order was awarded on the grounds that, on a temporary basis, all further medical decisions would be up to the biological parents (in alignment with the order), and West would be barred from seeing the newborn.

West’s legal team from Alliance Defending Freedom has continued to fight for her parental rights. They have argued that under Texas law, a woman who gives birth retains legal maternal rights, giving West the authority to make medical decisions for the child.

Currently, the baby remains in the physical and legal custody of Gilkar and Ahmed while receiving specialized medical care in Dallas. West is pursuing further legal action in Texas courts to seek parental rights and visitation.

In her interview with Live Action, West further elaborated on the emotions tied to her story. She said the experience changed her perspective on surrogacy.

“It [surrogacy] has been very degrading as a woman, and I felt extremely objectified, like I was just someone purchased,” West said, “And they get to make all of these decisions that are going to affect me for the rest of my life — trying to force an abortion and that is something I would have to live with, physically, emotionally, and mentally. Knowing what I know now, I wouldn’t have signed up for something like this.”

West added that her experience altered her view on the practice as a whole, even for situations in which the baby is healthy, and the biological parents accept the child. “It has changed my view on the potential damage that can be caused by giving these babies away from the only comfort that they’ve known and doing it intentionally,” she said.

Surrogacy is a practice that intentionally fragments parenthood. The overarching dilemma for a society that allows surrogacy is the question of who the baby’s parents really are: the gestational mother’s or the genetic parents’? There is no easy way around any of the difficulties the practice produces.