The concept of "chosen family" has become increasingly popular in recent years, particularly among queer communities, people of color, and those who have experienced trauma or alienation from their biological families. This trend towards creating alternative familial bonds outside of blood relations has led some scholars to question whether the principles of care can be extended beyond kinship-based structures to encompass these nontraditional arrangements. In this article, I will explore how chosen families challenge traditional ethics of care while also offering potential solutions for expanding its scope to include them.
Chosen families are often formed through shared interests, values, experiences, or identities, rather than biology. They may consist of friends, partners, roommates, coworkers, community members, or anyone else who forms a deep connection that resembles the emotional intimacy typically associated with familial relationships. These bonds can offer a sense of belonging, support, and security that is lacking in conventional familial structures.
They also raise questions about the limits of care, as they fall outside of the traditional boundaries of family ties.
One way to extend the ethics of care to include chosen families is by recognizing that love and commitment are key elements of caring. Love transcends biological connections and can exist between individuals who may never meet each other's biological relatives. Commitment involves actively working to maintain and nurture these relationships over time, even when they are not based on genetic affinity.
Choosing to prioritize someone's wellbeing requires intentionality and effort, regardless of how closely they relate to us.
Another approach is to view care as something that extends beyond personal relationships to larger communities. This perspective emphasizes collective responsibility for creating systems that promote equitable access to resources and opportunities. By recognizing the interconnectedness of our lives and our mutual reliance on one another, we can create policies and programs that benefit everyone. Acknowledging that we are all part of a greater network of relationships can help us see how individual choices impact others, leading to more just and sustainable outcomes.
Some argue that expanding the scope of care to include chosen families requires redefining what it means to be "family." Traditionally, the nuclear family has been seen as the primary unit of social organization, but this definition ignores the diverse ways people form meaningful relationships. Viewing family as an evolving concept allows us to recognize the fluid nature of relationships and the importance of multiple bonds in our lives. It also acknowledges that family members often take on different roles depending on their needs and circumstances.
While chosen families present challenges to traditional ethics of care, they offer potential solutions for expanding its scope to encompass broader conceptions of community and relationship. By valuing love, commitment, collective action, and open-ended definitions of family, we can create more inclusive and sustainable structures for providing support and care.
Can the ethics of care be expanded to include chosen families that replace traditional moral structures of kinship?
The ethics of care emphasizes the importance of intersubjectivity and relationships between individuals and their environments. This suggests that ethical decisions are based on what benefits both parties involved in an interaction, rather than following strict rules or obligations. Therefore, choosing a family outside of biological or cultural norms does not automatically preclude one from practicing ethics of care.