# “Love makes a family, but DNA makes a person.”

Page: https://stenobird.com/podcast/allpaths-podcast-7028681/love-makes-a-family-but-dna-makes-a-person
Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/allpaths-podcast-7028681/love-makes-a-family-but-dna-makes-a-person.md
Podcast: [AllPaths Podcast](https://stenobird.com/podcast/allpaths-podcast-7028681)
Published: 2026-08-11T12:00:00+00:00
Episode link: https://allpathsfb.org
Audio file: https://episodes.captivate.fm/episode/752c6ca2-de53-4149-8866-d55ad8866b05.mp3
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JSON: https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/allpaths-podcast-7028681/episodes/love-makes-a-family-but-dna-makes-a-person
Duration seconds: 3248

## Resource

In this episode, licensed social worker and founder of Beyond the Cradle Consulting Max Tang shares their experience as a donor-conceived person and their advocacy work to improve outcomes for donor-conceived people, donors, & parents. Max, a biracial, egg donor-conceived person from a monoracial Chinese American family, first discovered their origins during middle school when their parents revealed that they and their twin brother were conceived using a white egg donor. This revelation sparked years of identity confusion and grief, as Max struggled to reconcile their internal identity as a Chinese American with the world’s perception of their appearance and the medical system’s lack of transparency. The conversation continues through Max’s later journey of self-discovery, which was influenced by the rise of anti-Asian hate during the pandemic and led to a decision to take a DNA test that unexpectedly resulted in a connection with their biological mother. This meeting debunked long-held myths about the donor and helped Max see the family resemblance that they’d always struggled to find with their parents. This personal evolution "radicalized" Max in a positive way, leading them to facilitate peer support groups for BIPOC and multiracial donor-conceived adults and to advocate for a more human-centered, transparent approach within the fertility industry. Through Beyond the Cradle Consulting, Max is now dedicated to ensuring that donor conception is treated as a lifelong journey rather than a one-time medical event. Creating resources and providing opportunities for connection that prioritize the long-term well-being of all parties involved in the donor conception process, Max offers invaluable advice about the importance of early disclosure, maintaining openness and…

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## Transcript

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