As a clone, I would like to address the ignorance, fear and misconceptions in society with regards to human cloning and cloning in general. By identifying myself as a clone, I mean that I came into being not from a test tube experiment from within a lab, but from a cell or cells that split from cells created by sperm and an egg. So in a manner of speaking I am a clone of my twin brother. While the natural creation of identical twins and the artificial creation of a human clone may seem like apples and oranges to many, they are conceptually identical processes.
The end of 2002 came with news from the company Clonaid that the birth of a cloned human being, named Eve, had been successful. While this announcement was met with much skepticism--companies affiliated with organizations who place the origins of humanity in the hands of aliens apparently do not seem credible--it did put the debate of the future of cloning back under the microscope. Scientists, politicians, religious leaders and pundits were quick to condemn the idea of cloning. Yet cloning has not and should not be dismissed hastily.
Over the course of the last decade, cloning has been woven in and out of political and social consciousness in time to reports of another animal cloning breakthrough. The watershed moment was, to many, the arrival of \Dolly,"" a sheep that was cloned via the insertion of genetic material into an empty female sheep egg. After Dolly, many of the intelligentsia throughout the world were quick to declare that science was progressing at a rate that ethics and morals could no longer control. Mary Shelley's ""Frankenstein"" was alluded to repeatedly, as if to warn humanity of a similar fate if animal cloning was allowed to progress to the next logical step.
Human cloning is not the imminent end of human morality and evolution, but rather another way to do exactly what humanity has been doing between the sheets for hundreds of thousands of years. Animal clones (and I see no reason why human clones would be any different) are simply genetic material inserted into an empty cell. Assuming the cell begins to divide and grow, it becomes no different than an identical twin of the genetic originator. In theory, the cloned being, just like every other living organism, would still be susceptible to mutation. This would create changes between itself and the being from whom the genetic material originated; evolution could never cease.
However, there must be ethics with science. For example, atomic energy is not evil in nature, but evil exists in atomic energy's intentional application for ending or worsening life. Similarly, cloning is not inherently evil, but it must be used with wisdom and compassion. One misconception that needs to be addressed is that the clone of a human being would be soulless. As a clone of my brother, I can honestly say that I am definitely not a soulless abomination of the natural order. Another baseless fear, raised by political candidate Ron Greer in the recent congressional debates, is that cloning would be ""genocidal."" Skin color, just like many other phenotypes, is not based on mere genes. While ""designer babies"" are a possibility, one cannot simply flip switches inside a human clone to create a master race. However, the idea of cloning for the sake of immortality ought not to be a reason to create a child; a child created from a single adult's genetic material is no more property than a child created from two adult's genes.
Assuming that the legitimacy of reproductive freedoms continue, human cloning may soon find itself out of the hands of politicians. While anti-human cloning initiatives are being urged by the president, a serious case made by reproductive-right advocates may make those initiatives unconstitutional. What is human cloning if nothing else but the very essence of reproduction? Are constitutional and natural rights dependent on the manner and venue in which one is born?
As a ""Clone-American,"" I urge you to not dismiss the idea of human cloning without objective research and consideration. While cloning can provide future generations with unprecedented scientific breakthroughs and reproductive freedoms, caution must be taken. Ignorance and misuse undoubtedly will undermine or corrupt its potential just as they can with any mark of progress. Looking down at the healthy baby Eve, one would not be able to tell whether she is a ""real"" infant or a clone, just as one cannot tell which twin was the first and which is the copy.
