作者 ｜
胡郁盈（高雄醫學大學性別研究所）
摘要 ｜
本文探討臺灣女同志跨國使用人工生殖技術的醫療實作經驗，聚焦在強烈孕產慾望與跨國人工生殖網絡的共構下，女同志醫用者發展出的「兩段式醫療」生殖策略，以及其衍生的例外性（exceptional）健康風險。本文以「風險編排」與「行動運籌」為理論基礎，提出「跨國接力」的概念，強調跨國人工生殖醫療網絡本身的變動與不穩定，即是女同志生殖行動中最核心的風險結構，使得求孕女同志必須不斷銜接醫療、法律、經濟與社會等，多重行動者之間隨遇性的連結與中斷，而「接力」─如何順利地將前一行動者未完成的工作接力傳遞到下一行動者手上─也成為女同志跨國使用人工生殖醫療的獨特醫用模式。本文透過「接力」概念，進一步呈現女同志跨國人工生殖實作中「受弱」（vulnerability）與「抵抗」（resistance）之間的辯證關係。一方面，跨國人工生殖網絡中異質行動者的動態關係連結，為女同志醫用者帶來成功孕產及抵抗異性戀生育常規的可能性；另一方面，他們的生殖身體也在不穩定及隨遇性斷裂的跨國醫療網絡中，承受難以預測的孕產風險，導致他們的生殖和健康危殆（precarity）。透過「跨國接力」行動，本文指出求孕女同志在與跨國生殖網絡共作時所面臨的潛在醫療風險，以及創造嶄新生殖行動模式的能動性，從而進一步揭示異性戀常規、生殖科技專業與女性生殖自主之間，錯綜複雜的權力交織與辯證關係。
關鍵字 ｜
跨國接力; 人工生殖醫療; 女同志生殖; 女性生殖自主; 生殖健康危殆
Title ｜
Transnational Relay: Medical Practices and Reproductive Health Precarity in Taiwanese Lesbians' Transnational Use of Assisted Reproductive Technology
Author ｜
Yu-Ying Hu (Graduate Institute of Gender Studies, Kaohsiung Medical University)
Abstract ｜
This article explores the medical practices and experiences of Taiwanese lesbians who engage in transnational assisted reproductive technologies (ART). It focuses on how, under the influences of strong reproductive desires and transnational ART networks, these women develop a strategy of “two-stage reproduction” while bearing exceptional health risks. Grounded in the theoretical frameworks of “choreography of risk” and “logistic action,” this study proposes the concept of “transnational relay” to emphasize how the volatility and precarity inherent in transnational ART networks constitute a core risk for lesbian reproductive pursuits. In navigating these fragmented networks, lesbian women must constantly manage contingent and unstable disconnections among various medical, legal, economic, and social actors. “Relay”-that is, how to successfully pass one actor’s unfinished task on to the next- becomes a distinct mode of medical engagement for lesbian users within these transnational reproductive networks. Through the lens of “relay,” the article further illustrates the dialectical relationship between vulnerability and resistance in lesbian transnational ART practices. On one hand, the networked connections among heterogeneous actors enable reproductive success and offer possibilities for lesbian women to resist heteronormative reproductive norms. On the other hand, lesbian reproductive bodies are exposed to unpredictable reproductive risks within these fragmented transnational ART networks, resulting in their reproductive health precarity. By analyzing the practice of “transnational relay” by Taiwanese lesbian women seeking conception, this article highlights both the potential medical risks they face in collaborating with transnational ART networks and the agentive strategies they devise. In doing so, it reveals the complex and dialectical entanglements among heteronormative structures, biomedical technology, and women’s reproductive autonomy.
Keywords ｜
transnational relay; assisted reproductive technology; lesbian reproduction; women's reproductive autonomy; reproductive health precarity