Category: Abortion and the Disabled

A couple chose to abort their baby (by D&E) at just under 20 weeks when the child was diagnosed with severe kidney disease. He would have needed a kidney transplant and dialysis.  The woman says:

“We did not explicitly consider the potentially tremendous cost of pursuing aggressive treatment … but in retrospect those concerns were implicit in our decision-making”

Phoebe Day Danziger “A Peaceful Death” Slate FEB. 5 2014

Below: chart of how a D&E abortion is performed

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From the mother of a developmentally delayed child:

“As the parent of a disabled child, I have experienced firsthand the transformed perspective on life possible when one is given the opportunity to live with those who confound our expectations, who have too much or too little of a range of expected human traits, who experience life in a way that must remain opaque to the majority of normally functional human beings.

What my parents’ generation would have called Declan’s “mental retardation,” we termed his “developmental disabilities.”

But what was neither retarded nor disabled was an infectious enthusiasm for life which illuminated any interaction with him, an ability to give and receive love that was uncomplicated by the egoism, self-awareness, or self-consciousness of a “typical” child.

Parenting this child forced us to reconsider our conception of what qualities and capacities made life worth living; they joy my son clearly took in life and the joy he gave us compelled such a reevaluation.”

Shelley Burtt “Which Babies?” Tikkun January 2001

Quoted in Christine Watkins, ed. The Ethics of Abortion (New York: Greenhaven press, 2005) 72

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Joanne Dieleman, a Canadian pro-lifer, was pregnant when she contracted German measles. A book tells her story:

“In 1970, Joanne faced a surprising test for what it is to be pro-life. While expecting her fifth child, she contracted German measles. A Dutch midwife, she understood too well the implications; so she went to her female physician who ordered her to hospital the next day.

Expecting a battery of tests, Joanne discovered she was scheduled for an abortion. She walked out. Returning to her physician, she cunningly asked, “Will we be able to see if the baby is handicapped when he or she is born?”

The physician answered a reassuring, “Yes.”

So Joanne suggested “Well, let’s wait then until after the birth to kill him or her.”

Abruptly the discussion ended. Later, her baby, Albert, was born healthy and normal. He is now 18 and six foot three.”

Ken Campbell Five Years Rescuing at the Gates of Hell (Burlington, Ontario, Canada: Coronation Publications 1990) 57 – 58

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The mother of a child with down syndrome wrote:

“I… gave birth to a severely retarded child. Even though I would not have chosen Joey 12 years ago today, today I love him as my special son…

If we chose only that which appeared important or undemanding, I doubt if much would be accomplished or much love would be radiated in our lives. If not for my retarded son, I would not be defending the handicapped. Perhaps that’s his purpose for life. I don’t believe any life, regardless of its potential, is in vain.

Most handicapped persons don’t have a problem of being handicapped; their problem is society’s acceptance of them and their handicap…”

Quoted in Randall J Hekman Justice for the Unborn (Ann Arbor, Michigan: Servant Books, 1984) 55 – 56

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Testimony from parents of a Down syndrome child in an editorial in a newspaper:

“There are no more giving, joyful, happy or precious children then Downs children. They are a genuine gift from God. Our son teaches us the meaning of patience and love and faith – just by his very existence.

He has touched the lives of so many of our relatives and friends, adding dimensions they had not known existed. And he has helped us grow as a couple and as parents.”

Randall J Hekman Justice for the Unborn (Ann Arbor, Michigan: Servant Books, 1984) 55

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Writer Theo Malekin writes about his daughter, who has down syndrome:

“Around 80 percent of women who get a positive test for Down syndrome still choose to have an abortion. Yet I cannot think of any parents of a child with Down syndrome who would give them up for anything….

Hazel has had an array of specialists who have helped her learn to walk and talk and she goes to a regular elementary school with other ‘normal’ kids.

She still has challenges. We haven’t got her potty-trained yet. On the other hand, she knows her alphabet and she can count better than some of her classmates. ….

I do not love my daughter any less because she has Down syndrome. Her diagnosis says very little about who she is. She is not a disease or a syndrome but an individual: affectionate, naughty, infuriating at times, stubborn, self-willed and utterly charming.

Certainly she has medical problems and developmental challenges not faced by other children. I’m not saying those don’t exist. But they’re one part of a much bigger picture.…

It is also an argument for changing attitudes that appear self-evident to too much of the general population. You cannot know if someone else’s life is worth living without asking them and without even knowing them.

A disability does not necessarily stop you living a full, satisfying life. Oddly enough, I’m not sure that disabilities have anything to do with living full satisfying lives.

When it comes to Hazel, her life is not a burden to her family but an unending source of delight. For my part, I cannot imagine life without her. But most importantly, her life is valuable to herself, and definitely worth living.”

Sadly Theo Malekin supports legalized abortion despite his belief that his daughter’s life is valuable

Theo Malekin “A Generational Shift in Understanding Life With Down Syndrome” The Atlantic MAR 27, 2013

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In a conversation about aborting down syndrome babies, one new father said:

“When i found out i was going to be a father, [of a baby with down syndrome]  me and my girlfriend freaked out and quickly said ” can we do this, are you sure, its going to ruin our plans ” and i was scared to death.

As soon as my daughter was born, its a whole another story, the greatest joy of my life, i did a complete 360 and now i cant picture my life without my daughter.

What im saying is, You could say i wouldnt want a down’s baby or any kind of sickness, but when it actually happens, it’ll be the greatest test of your life that you wouldnt think twice about, youll just know what to do and how to do it.”

NikeTalk Forum, February 27, 2016 Here. Visited 8/15/2017

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A mother whose amniocentesis showed that her child had down syndrome describes the “horrible experience” she then went through. She says:

“I got the amnio at 18 weeks, then the genetics counselor showed a video. I remember it like yesterday. I could tell it was poorly done.

It started by showing a child with Down syndrome and the narrator said, ‘There is an X percent chance your child will die in utero, there is a Y percent chance your child will die before age one, there is a Z percent chance your child will die before three. If your child lives, he or she will be susceptible to a number of medical conditions.’”

From the LifeNews article:

The video proceeded to list the possible medical conditions for what Whitten said seemed like an “eternity.”

After the amateurish video finished, the genetics counselor returned and told her, “80 to 90 percent of parents abort children with Down syndrome, and you can too.”

Whitten recognized the counselor’s voice as the video narrator.

Despite the counselor’s subtle pressure to get her to choose abortion, this mother had her child. She says of her daughter:

“It’s been such a gift, she’s opened my eyes to the beauty of brilliance. I’m not very religious, but I consider her a blessing.”

CORTNEY O’BRIEN  “Head of Down Syndrome Group: I Chose Life Despite Counselor Pressuring Me to Abort” LifeNews SEP 16, 2013

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