China's 'Birth Tourism' Isn't About the U.S.: Adam Minter

Why do wealthy Chinese women fly to the United States to give birth? Last week, this phenomenon known as “birth tourism” became a national topic of discussion in China when a rumor circulated that Wang Baoqiang, a baby-faced A-list movie star who is popular for his comedies, had accompanied his pregnant wife to Los Angeles, where she is to give birth to the couple’s second child.

If one goes by the conventional U.S. wisdom about “birth tourism” featured recently in American news media, the answer is self-evident: Children born in the U.S. are entitled to U.S. passports, free American education and other rights of U.S. citizenship that are not readily available to their Chinese-born parents. This is a neat (if self-flattering) explanation that undoubtedly finds support in the growing number of "birthing centers" in Los Angeles and New York that cater to Mainland Chinese clients.