The Toronto Star did a fantastic article on women determined to have a baby boy are buying unmarked medication from strangers to affect the sex.According to the article, Punjabi women face huge pressure to have baby boys – girls are considered burdens on the family. “Boys outnumber girls in Toronto’s South Asian community. In Brampton, for instance, the ratio is 864 girls for every 1,000 boys.”
For hundreds of years, women in many cultures have tried to control the sex of their unborn children, often to have sons which were/are considered more valuable. Recent technology like ultrasounds has made it easier for expectant mothers to simply abort female fetuses.
This sex selection is not an India specific problem.
China has 32 million more boys under the age of 20 than girls, thanks to a restrictive one child per family policy and the abuse of reproductive technology.
So what the hell happens when these children (those who are heterosexual) grow up and start looking for a mate? It would be nice if the shortage of women at least had the effect of increasing their power in domestic relationships.
But sadly, a society that devalues baby girls to that extent doesn’t always treasure adult women.
The recent article has sparked debate in the GTA about the hush-hush practice of trying to avoid having daughters. An honest discussion of the pressure these mothers are under to have sons is the first step towards trying to end this long cross-cultural tradition.
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