Russisk surrogati og den moralske panikken rundt «enslige menn»

Abstract: Russian surrogacy and the moral panics around ‘single men’According to the ‘Anti-propaganda law’, the Russian state seeks to shield minors against ‘non-traditional sexual relations’. Despite this state-sanctioned intolerance, analysis reveals, that the webpages of many Russian surrogacy providers employ marketing strategies prominently featuring ‘single men’ – often used as a euphemism for gay men within the context of surrogacy. Nowhere else is the child-figure invoked in such (conceptual) proximity to the queer. The criminal case against surrogacy practitioners initiated in July 2020 exemplifies the tension that de-facto gay-inclusive surrogacy generates with respect to the official position of the Russian state. Drawing on the concept of homocapitalism (Rao, 2020), which offers a theoretical frame to account for the political effects of how neoliberal global free-market capitalism leverages the case for LGBTQ rights, this article inquires more deeply into this tension, asking: In what ways do surrogacy providers in Russia help to fuel moral panics with respect to the queer? What values and discourses do they appeal to when advertising their services to ‘single men’ on their websites? How do such agencies stand in conflict with respect to Russia’s current biopolitical project with its focus on ‘traditional family values’?