A Brave New World: Without Down Syndrome
My cousin Eddie has Down Syndrome. When I was a kid I was scared to death of him because my other cousins used to "sic" him on me (they tricked him into chasing me). But as I grew up I came to love Eddie and accepted him in our play just like all the other cousins. He was funny, very smart, and pleasant to be with. He helped his mother and lived with her for many years. He's about 60 now. For about 20 years of my life I have worked with persons with mental retardation, many of whom had Down Syndrome. Although many had a stubborn streak when younger, all of them were pleasant people to be around when they were older. They were very friendly, loving people. Many tried to lift my spirits if they saw I was having a bad day. I can't imagine life without them, but someone can:
The Washington Post recently published an article about a new medical finding: Down Syndrome Now Detectable In 1st Trimester. The bottom line of the article is that parents (actually, the article never mentions "parents" - only "women") can now decide earlier in the pregnancy to "terminate the pregnancy". The "benefits" they say is that the woman can make this decision more privately, before people notice that she is pregnant and before the "fetus" begins that nasty habit of showing the mother he or she is alive around the 20th week by kicking and moving around (it kind of belies that "blob of tissue" propaganda, doesn't it?).
The study involved 38,167 women and their "fetuses". The new technique, which incorporates two tests done at different times in the first trimester, correctly identified 95% of the "fetuses" with Down Syndrome. The article mentioned that the tests gave a 5% "false positive" reading. I don't know how many children of the 38,167 women were actually found to have Down Syndrome, nor do I know how many actually survived to birth, but the National Institutes for Health (NIH) estimates that one in every 660 children ("fetuses") will have Down Syndrome. Using that statistic, 58 children would be expected to have Down Syndrome of the 38,167 (assuming none were multiple birth) pregnancies. If the 5% false positive reading is 5% of the 58, that means that three children would have been misdiagnosed as having Down Syndrome, and more than likely, would have been "terminated" (or killed). However, it is possible that the false positive readings would apply to the whole 38,167 population. In that case, 1,908 children would be falsely identified as having Down Syndrome. Whether it is three or 1,908, it still means that children without Down Syndrome may have died. But what about the 58 children that had Down Syndrome? Did they deserve to die? Is their life a "life not worth living"? That's what the Nazis thought!
By the way, a more recent article discussing this study (Defining Life Down: Are we okay with eliminating a class of humans?) noted that a pediatrician who served a large population of children with Down Syndrome commented that new cases were no longer coming in at the rate they once did. The article has this chilling point to make: "Breaking news: No one has found a cure." In other words, these children are being "terminated".
Autism, which many believe has a genetic component, is found in one of every 166 births! Not one in 660, like Down Syndrome, but one in every 166! Will there someday be an in utero test for autism? Don't know. But with our society expecting perfection in every child now, how long will it be until it is your "duty" as a parent to avoid his suffering and the "cost" to society by having an abortion?
As the saying goes, "I did nothing when they came for the Catholics, because I was not a Catholic. I did nothing when they came for the Jews, because I was not a Jew. . . But then they came for me, and there was no one left to stand up for me." A child with Down Syndrome is still a child. Would I volunteer to be the parent of a child with Down Syndrome, or autism, or cerebral palsy? No. But thank God that He did not ask me first.
Cousin Eddie is still Cousin Eddie. My grandson with cerebral palsy is still Peter. My life would be less complete without them. My life may have been less complicated without them, but who says life is supposed to be uncomplicated. I don't think God causes Down Syndrome or autism or cerebral palsy or any other disability but I think He is very interested in how we handle such things. Remember Jesus' words to His disciples who had guessed that a man's blindness from birth was due to someone's sin: "Neither this man nor his parents sinned," said Jesus, "but this happened so that the work of God might be displayed in his life." (John 9:3).
When we go through the complications that a child born with a disability brings into our lives, I think it may help if we recall those words of Jesus. The things we do for and with such a child "show the work of God" to a world starved for such displays. They think our children are imperfect and the result of some sort of "sin" (whether spiritual or some accident of nature) but we know that God is watching how we handle things. Perhaps it is easier to love perfect children, I don't know. One thing I know: we must love and cherish each child born into the world (and not yet born), not just the "perfect" ones. God is watching.
~GJH~(11-30-2005)
Update: As expected: 90 Percent of Pregnant Women Who Have Been Given a Down Syndrome Diagnosis Have Chosen an Abortion
Update (21May2008): A Mom Makes the Right Choice
Update (11Sep2008): Well, who would have guessed that Sarah Palin (A Mom Makes the Right Choice) would become the nominee for Vice President of the US?! Well, her brave and moral stand has some Canadian doctors worried that other mothers may follow her example and choose life for their children with Down Syndrome: Canadian Doctors Group Worried Palin Example Will Lower Down's Abortion Rate