What Are Designer Babies?
Designer babies are babies that had specific traits selected, edited, and/or removed when they were an embryo. The first designer baby is considered to be a young man, named Adam Nash, who was born in 2000. His genes were not directly altered in this case, only selected for. However, it certainly brought about interest towards designer babies, and the idea of genetically engineering one instead. This would eventually lead to a controversy in 2018, where a Chinese researcher, Dr. He Jiankui, announced that he had created the first genetically engineered babies at the Second International Summit on Human Genome Editing. He faced much criticism by the scientific community, but also some support as well. There is limited knowledge on what exactly occurred during the experiment, and limited knowledge on the twins themselves. Therefore, it makes it hard to tell what kind of consequences can arise from the experiment, and in turn, the possible pursuit of genetically engineered designer babies. It leaves us with an important question: 'will the existence of these genetically altered designer babies benefit or harm us if they were to become commonplace?'. The answer to this question can vary, depending on who you ask. We can start by looking at how America thinks designer babies will affect our society.
Based off of the statistics above, it seems as though people generally recognize that there can be both positive and negative consequences of genetically modifying unborn children, but most have a line they do not cross. This is not surprising because the morals, ethics, and potential consequences of genetically engineered designer babies are still very much up for debate. There are valid arguments to be made for either position. So, what exactly are the positions? And what are some of the more prominent arguments each one possesses?
The positions
Position 1
Position 2
Who is affected?
Short Answer: Everyone Is Affected
Long Answer - Major stakeholders in this controversy would include: Parents/parents-to-be, governments, the designer babies themselves, fertility clinics, & various organizations/companies. However, it would be more fitting to say that pretty much everyone is affected. The consequences and outcomes that can occur from something like this are large enough to affect everyone eventually. For example, the altered genes of designer babies will be inherited by their children, then their grandchildren, and so on. Although it may take a really long time, people would eventually carry at least some DNA that was genetically altered generations ago, as well as the effects of those altered genes, whether positive or negative. From a more social perspective, designer babies could cause various forms of inequality in society, and even develop new ones. That will certainly affect most people. On the opposite side of the spectrum, they may benefit us greatly with their enhanced capabilities. Perhaps, they may even be pioneers of a new golden age of advancement and prosperity for humans.
So, What is my truth?
My truth is that genetically engineered designer babies are something that will greatly influence social inequalities for better or worse, as well as define the ethics and morals of 'playing God' with the lives of humans. Whether or not it is right to choose what people should and should not be born as is a dilemma that will certainly persist as we gain more knowledge, information, and most importantly, wisdom on the topic in the future. No matter what may come of it all, it is my hope that the right choices will be made to ensure that everyone's perspective is considered, and that no one will suffer negative consequences as a result of our ultimate decisions on the matter.