Gretchen Sisson on "Relinquished" and the politics of adoption

December 13, 2024 00:30:38
Gretchen Sisson on "Relinquished" and the politics of adoption
51 Percent
Gretchen Sisson on "Relinquished" and the politics of adoption

Dec 13 2024 | 00:30:38

/

Show Notes

On the latest 51%, we speak with sociologist Gretchen Sisson about her book Relinquished: The Politics of Adoption and the Privilege of American Motherhood. Sisson studies the relationship between abortion and adoption in the U.S., and is part of a team of researchers for "The Turnaway Study" at the University of California, San Francisco. In Relinquished, Sisson compiles a decade's worth of interviews with women who gave their newborns up for adoption through a private adoption agency. In unpacking how some agencies pressure (and rely on) struggling moms to relinquish their children, Sisson pushes back on the idea that adoption is an ethical alternative to abortion, and questions whether it's really a choice at all.

Guest: Gretchen Sisson, sociologist with Advancing New Standards in Reproductive Health at the University of California San Francisco, author of Relinquished: The Politics of Adoption and the Privilege of American Motherhood

51% is a national production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio in Albany, New York. Jesse King is our producer and host. Our associate producer is Madeleine Reynolds, and our theme is "Lolita" by the Albany-based artist Girl Blue. 

 ------------

Other Episodes

Episode 0

February 28, 2022
Episode Cover

#1701: Happy Birthday, Harriet Tubman | 51%

On this week’s 51%, we speak with University at Albany professor Dr. Janell Hobson about the life and work of Harriet Tubman, and a...

Listen

Episode

January 26, 2024 00:28:58
Episode Cover

Emily Lynn Paulson on "Hey, Hun"

On the latest 51%, we sit down with author and speaker Emily Lynn Paulson to discuss her experience as a “girlboss” for a multilevel...

Listen

Episode 0

May 19, 2023 00:29:14
Episode Cover

#1765: Brooke Ellison on "Look Both Ways" | 51%

On this week's 51%, we speak with Dr. Brooke Ellison, associate professor of health policy and medical ethics at Stony Brook University. After a...

Listen