More Down Syndrome Testing Will Lead to More Abortion
— Posted by John (January 2, 2007 at 9:43 am)
Starting this week, the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecologists is recommending that all pregnant women be offered a test for Down syndrome.
I wonder who’s happy about this news, considering that more than 80% of babies diagnosed in utero with Down syndrome are aborted.
In looking for reactions to this and other prenatal screening stories, I came across this must-read commentary. The author, Paul Adeline, reports about a group of individuals with Down Syndrome who — God love them — disrupted the 2003 International Down Syndrome Screening Conference in an effort to have their opinions heard.
Adeline writes:
By the time the police had arrived, the conference organisers had agreed to let Anya Souza, 40, a woman with Down’s Syndrome, speak to the delegates for 10 minutes.
The other people with Down’s Syndrome were allowed to sit at the back of the hall.
These are some of the points Anya made:
I can’t get rid of my Down’s. But you can’t get rid of my happiness. You can’t get rid of the happiness I give others, either.
It’s doctors that want to test pregnant women, and stop people like me being born.
Sometimes doctors want to sterilise us, prevent us from being born.
After the conference Anya told a Disability Now Extra reporter that she is against testing for Down’s Syndrome, and that there should be more people with Down’s Syndrome around.
HT: NTs Are Weird
This entry is filed under Abortion, Health Issues. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
Pansy Moss says:
When I eas pregnant with my Ian, my second child at age 22, my alpha fetal protein test came out odd. My doctor left a message on my answering machine telling me the test results were funny and I needed genetic counseling right away. My husband and I went to genetic counseling not knowing what to expect. We naively thought the whole idea was if something was found wrong with the baby, we would find information and support on how to care for a child with special needs.
At genetic counseling, we found out the Triple Screen results showed results the same as a 36 year old woman, meaning a much higher chance of down syndrome. So my choices were 1. abortion 2. an amnio or 3. nothing. We opted for the amnio, mostly because we were young and bombarded with so much scary messages about “if the baby is this or that…”
When we went for the amnio, the doctor told us that we were 18 weeks and that it was legally still possible to do “do something about it if there was bad news”. Again, we thought this was to find out and prepare, not look for a reason to abort. After that we have rejected the Triple Screen.
Comment posted January 2nd, 2007 at 4:40 pm
Sunnyday says:
I wish more people knew about Barbara at Mommy Life. Barbara and her family have opened their family to children with Down Syndrome and have adopted four. A nice family photo can be found here —
http://www.mommylife.net/archives/2006/12/what_a_week.html#trackback
Having a child with Down Syndrome in the family can be tough, but difficulties are part of every family’s life. I’m glad Anya Souza and the others in the group spoke up and made their presence felt!
Comment posted January 2nd, 2007 at 6:33 pm
mary kay says:
Professor Howard Cuckle, a member of the International Down’s Syndrome Screening Group’s scientific committee agreed that the protesters had some good points, and he respected the rights of the protesters to express their views. He also said that the delegates were talking about “technical topics” and the conference was not the proper place for speakers to bring out personal matters.
The world has gone stark raving mad.
Technical topics? Not personal matters? I am sometimes horrified to be part of the human race. He respected the rights of the protesters to express their views? My Lord, how decent of him. He must be exhaustedfrom all that altruism. What arrogance! To sit on a pedestal, decreeing that those who are not worthy of defending, are respected for expressing their views? Not respected enough to protect their lives, not respected enough to ensure that they are allowed to exist in our society. Like it’s some great privelege to express the veiw that you believe you are human!!!! We are not “better” or “better off” than people with downs or autism or bi polar or anything else. It is not his place to decide that these people can have an opinion. The nerve…you probably can’t tell from my tone, but I’m a little peeved. Lord help us!!! Tell me which of these people has the real handicap. The “delegate” or the one who recognizes the value of ALL human life!
Okay, I feel better now. Thanks.
MK
Comment posted January 3rd, 2007 at 7:30 pm
Young Christian Woman says:
Actually, Sunnyday, her first son with Down Syndrome was her biological child, and only the other three are adopted.
(Not that there is anything wrong with it either way–just clarifying the facts).
She also has eight other children, all her biological children, and does not believe in birth control, including NFP.
Comment posted January 17th, 2007 at 10:29 am
Generations for Life » Blog Archive » So Much for “Safe, Legal, and Rare” says:
[...] More Down Syndrome Testing Will Lead to More Abortion [...]
Comment posted September 12th, 2008 at 9:42 am
Generations for Life » Blog Archive » World Down Syndrome Day says:
[...] did you know that individuals with Down Syndrome themselves oppose prenatal detection testing for this very [...]
Comment posted March 19th, 2010 at 11:37 am