- Nigerian author and feminist icon Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie has disclosed the backlash she faced after revealing that she welcomed twins through surrogacy.
- Adichie openly discussed the criticisms following her twins’ birth, which she shares with her husband, Dr. Ivara Esege, in an interview with Chude Jideonwo.
Renowned Nigerian author and feminist voice, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, has addressed the criticism she faced after welcoming twins through surrogacy.
In a heartfelt discussion with media figure Chude Jideonwo, the Americanah and Half of a Yellow Sun writer spoke candidly about how public reaction impacted her after news of her growing family emerged. Adichie and her husband, Dr. Ivara Esege, welcomed the twins via surrogacy, a decision that sparked both admiration and criticism.
“My boys are so precious to me. And I hated that anything about them would become politicised. So, on the one hand, I thought, ‘I wish I hadn’t talked about it.’ But on the other hand, there is no way I am going to lie about the process of birthing them,” Adichie said in the interview.
Adichie emphasized the importance of breaking the stigma surrounding alternative paths to parenthood, including surrogacy. Her openness, she hopes, will encourage more women to speak freely without fear of judgment.
“I am hoping that if anything good comes out of this, it would be that more women are less ashamed of talking about reaching motherhood through non-traditional means. Because our society is so judgmental, and I don’t think that that is good for anybody,” she stated.
The literary icon, now a mother of three, also highlighted the unfair expectations and blame placed on women struggling with fertility-related health conditions, such as fibroids or delayed conception.
“I felt that there were many women who would then be pressured by people saying, ‘Look, Chimamanda is 47, and she had kids at that age; what about you?’ And just in general, I think there is so much shame around issues of fertility that I just think it’s too much of a burden for women,” she stated.
She added, “Women are shamed when they have fibroids, women are shamed when they have issues getting pregnant, and I don’t believe in that sort of shame.”
Despite the scrutiny, Adichie made it clear that her journey to motherhood has been nothing short of fulfilling.
“My daughter and my babies are the greatest gift I’ve been given. So — zero regrets.”
