Down Syndrome And Abortion

"Life unworthy of life" - Nazis, 1939, when describing the killing of the mentally and physically disabled. The Nazis required doctors to report all cases of newborns with severe disabilities. All newborns and young children who were suffering from disabilities, such as Down syndrome, cerebral palsy, epilepsy, and hydrocephalus, were taken from their parents. A panel of medical experts were required to vote for or against the destruction of the child. Most of the parents didn't even know what happened to their children, but the Nazis then told them that their children died of pneumonia and the bodies were cremated to prevent the spread of the disease.


Today an estimated 90% of all babies with Down syndrome are aborted because the parents involved obviously believe that the baby is "life unworthy of life." Due to a fairly new prenatal genetic screening that many parents are taking advantage of, babies with Down syndrome can be discovered early in the womb. Many physicians in the past have strongly recommended to parents that they should abort a Down syndrome child in the womb. In the Journal of Pediatrics in January 2005 a study was reported that showed that most parents were given inadequate information from doctors, and what was given was predominately negative. Hopefully, now this will change. A new bill that was recently passed is called "The Prenatally and Postnatally Diagnosed Conditions Awareness Act" (S. 1810), and was co-sponsored by Senators Edward Kennedy (D-MA) and Sam Brownback (R-KS). This will provide parents receiving a prenatal or postnatal diagnosis of Down syndrome, cystic fibrosis, spina bifida, and other disabilities more information and support than has been available in the past. The bill passed the Senate by unanimous consent on Sept. 23, 2008, and passed the House by a voice vote on Sept. 25, 2008.

It is amazing that some of the same people who fight for the rights of the disabled are for abortion, which kills many afflicted with the same disability in the womb. One of the sponsors of this bill, Ted Kennedy, has been given a 100% rating by the pro-abortion group NARAL. His sister, Eunice Kennedy Schriver, founded Special Olympics, which he has been a big supporter of. He even had another sister with special needs. Of course his stand on abortion seems very hypocritical, but at least he should be given accolades for defending those born with a disability.

The number-one reason for killing the disabled unborn is the same as why people kill any other unborn baby: the location of the child. Many will surely disagree and say that they don't want to bring into this world a baby with Down syndrome because of the difficulty of raising such a child, plus the hardships that person with Down syndrome will have. If the child was born, they wouldn't say it should be killed because of those same reasons. We usually don't have "lives unworthy of living" after the disabled come out of the womb. Of course, there are exceptions, such as the case of Terri Schiavo and those who believe in euthanasia for the elderly.

Shouldn't we focus more on people who have had children with Down Syndrome and their experiences? Ask any parent about their child with Down Syndrome, and most will give you an opposite view than those who decide to kill the child with the same disorder in the womb. Often when parents receive the news from the screening, they do what others do who want to abort, and that's just focus on the negatives that might occur if this baby is born. If the parents of the unborn do not want this child, there is always adoption. Actually, there are waiting lists of people who want to adopt babies with Down syndrome, but unfortunately, because of the high abortion rate, there are few to adopt.

When one stops and thinks about what is happening to the 90% of Down syndrome babies killed in the womb, one thing seems very apparent: WHO DO THOSE PARENTS THINK THEY ARE? Just because this baby and his parents will have difficulties in life, then they believe the baby should be killed. There are hundreds of other negative situations that can afflict everybody, even those living in affluent lifestyles. Do we tell ourselves that others shouldn't live because some calamity, such as divorce, bankruptcy, death of a family member, natural disaster, etc., might be in their future? There are no guarantees in life, either good or bad, so why should people show by their actions that a baby inflicted with Down syndrome should be a "life unworthy of life?"