Summary: A sperm bank from Ohio is being sued by a white woman for incorrectly sending her vials of sperm from an African American donor.
A Downers Grove sperm bank is being sued by a white woman from Ohio because she claims she was given vials from an African American donor by mistake, according to The Chicago Tribune.
The woman claims that this mistake has made it difficult for her and her partner to raise their now two-year-old daughter in an all-white community.
The lawsuit was filed in Cook County Circuit Court on Monday and in it, Jennifer Cramblett, from Uniontown, claims that Midwest Sperm Bank gave her the wrong vials in September of 2011. She says that she ordered the sperm of a white donor.
Cramblett and domestic partner Amanda Zinkon chose donor No. 380 after sifting through pages of donor histories. The lawsuit claims that their doctor received vials from donor No. 330, who is African American.
Cramblett found out about the mistake in April of 2012 when she was already pregnant and the couple ordered more vials of sperm in order to have another child. They wanted sperm from the same donor.
Midwest Sperm Bank is being sued for breach of warranty and wrongful birth. She has cited economic losses and emotional losses in the lawsuit.
“On August 21, 2012, Jennifer gave birth to Payton, a beautiful, obviously mixed-race baby girl,” the lawsuit states. “Jennifer bonded with Payton easily and she and Amanda love her very much. Even so, Jennifer lives each day with fears, anxieties and uncertainty about her future and Payton’s future.”
According to the lawsuit, it has been difficult for Cramblett and Zinkon to race a mixed-race daughter in their all-white community. Cramblett said she was raised with people who had stereotypical attitudes about those who are not white, according to the lawsuit. She also said she did not know an African American until attending college at the University of Akron.
“Because of this background and upbringing, Jennifer acknowledges her limited cultural competency relative to African-Americans and steep learning curve, particularly in small, homogenous Uniontown, which she regards as too racially intolerant,” the lawsuit states.
Cramblett also said she is worried that her “all white and unconsciously insensitive family,” which still has not accepted her homosexuality, will have a negative effect on her daughter.
“Though compelled to repress her individuality amongst family members, Payton’s differences are irrepressible, and Jennifer does not want Payton to feel stigmatized or unrecognized due simply to the circumstances of her birth,” the lawsuit states. “Jennifer’s stress and anxiety intensify when she envisions Payton entering an all-white school.”
Cramblett received a letter of apology one month after learning of the mistake from the sperm bank. She also received a refund for the six incorrect vials sent to her.
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