Palin, disability and Down syndrome: Sept. 8, 2008
September 8th, 2008
Editor’s note: Coverage of the disability angle in relation to the candidacy of GOP vice presidential hopeful Sarah Palin continues to mount.
Rather than present each item as a separate post, we’re grouping them here. Please click on the headline above to get the full version, or on ‘read the rest of this entry’ below, and check back to our home page throughout the day for further developments.
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Palin’s pitch to parents of disabled raises some doubts; Support is pledged, but GOP ticket seeks spending cuts — Wall Street Journal
Disability rights activists wondered whether Palin’s pledge of advocacy would be undercut by the Republican ticket’s pledge to reduce government spending, although many said they hoped Trig Palin’s appearance at the convention would lead to greater public acceptance of Down syndrome.
Republican strategists predicted Palin would unify people with disabilities behind their party.
Many parents fear that Down syndrome is on the leading edge of a eugenics movement to eliminate children with abnormalities. Others are wary of being labeled as social conservatives if they choose to have a child knowing it will have a cognitive disability.
Those concerns are likely to move into the mainstream now, along with questions about what either party is likely to do for children with disabilities.
Among items on the legislative agenda of disability activists are: special education funding, outreach programs for parents who have just received a diagnosis of Down syndrome; housing and employment programs, greater access to Medicaid benefits, “best-practices” clinics, a national registry of people with Down syndrome and tax-free savings accounts for their long-term care.
Life expectancy is approaching that of healthy children, raising questions about who is to care for them.
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Fusing politics and motherhood in a new way — New York Times
Struggling to accept the diagnosis of Down syndrome and fearful of public criticism of a governor’s pregnancy, Sarah Palin concealed the news of her condition from everyone until her third trimester. But by the time of her baby shower a month after her son’s birth, she had come to regard baby Trig as a blessing from God. “Who of us in this room has the perfect child?” a friend remembers her saying.
Now motherhood is an explicit part of her appeal, and Palin has gone from hiding her pregnancy to bringing her infant son with her on stage at the Republican National Convention. In so doing, she has sparked a national debate along with both applause and criticism of her balancing act. While many parents of children with disabilities view her as a powerful advocate, some accuse her of exploiting her child for political gain.
This extended feature recaps Gov. Palin’s political ascendancy. Among those quoted is Heather Bruce, Palin’s older sister. She has a son with autism.
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Trig Palin’s story is safe ground for the Republican ticket — Los Angeles Times
Both Sen. John McCain and Sen. Barack Obama have promised to do more for Americans with disabilities if elected. But Sarah Palin’s son Trig offers the Republicans an unprecedented chance to connect with voters, even as Democrats seek to portray them as conservatives who are out of touch with middle America.
Palin has a track record of approving budget increases for people with disabilities, with hefty increases in spending on children with intensive medical needs and on adult mental health services. One political science professor expected that the GOP ticket would spend “much more time” talking about Trig than about other social issues, allowing them to discuss social values in a way that won’t alienate moderate voters.
Disability advocate Anthony Shriver, founder of Best Buddies, was somewhat skeptical.
“Historically, Republicans haven’t been that interested,” Shriver said. “To have an advocate in the Republican Party is a new twist and welcome addition.”
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Palin raises hope for parents of disabled kids — Associated Press
Parents of children with Down syndrome say they often feel misunderstood by those who question their decision to have a child with a disability. They said many people fail to realize that medical, educational and legislative advances have dramatically improved life for those born with Down syndrome.
And they hope Palin’s example will convince more parents that they, too, can handle the challenge of a Down syndrome child.
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September 8th, 2008 at 9:15 pm
Having a family member with a disability is no guarantee that a candidate will support a disability rights agenda.
Some of the real questions are:
Will Governor Palin get Senator McCain to end his opposition to the Community Choice Act which will end the institutional bias in America’s healthcare financing system and allow people with disabilities to live in their own homes and communities rather than isolated nursing homes and other institutions?
Will she, like Senator McCain, support judicial nominees to the Supreme Court and lower-level courts who have disregarded the intent of Congress and dramatically rolled back the civil rights protections of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), leaving millions of Americans with epilepsy, diabetes, mental illness, HIV-AIDS, and other disabilities unprotected?
Jim Ward
Founder and President
ADA Watch and the National Coalition for Disability Rights
Washington, DC
September 8th, 2008 at 6:17 pm
I am one of the parents that fear the Down syndrome is on the leading edge of a eugenics movement. Unfortunately, Palin is not creating the wave of attention for Down syndrome in Canada, like it does in the USA.
In Canada all pregnant women are offered government funded prenatal screening for Down syndrome. There has been no extra funding towards education, information or awareness.
Screening is offered without informed consent and many women, (like Palin, who said she was ‘devastated and shocked’), are not prepared for the information revealed by testing.
The ‘official’ prevalence of Down syndrome in Canada, (still used by Health Canada and the Canadian Down Syndrome Society), is 1 in 800. This number is based on data collected between 1991-1999. Considering the revolution in prenatal screening technology that has taken place since 17 years ago, this number is hopelessly ancient, inaccurate and likely obscures a sad reality. A major health policy, affecting all pregnant women, is implemented, but the effects are not measured, sloppy?
In the province of Nova Scotia births of babies with DS between 2001-2006 have plummeted with 60%, when compared to birth rate between 1997-1999.
The Canadian media and politicians continue to ignore the issue.
September 8th, 2008 at 5:29 pm
Halleluja, you said it Pamela. Let’s forget about pro-life, pro-abortion and talk about pro-humane and address some real issues. Taking choices away does not create a society more embracing of (genetic) differences and supportive of families with special needs.
September 8th, 2008 at 1:40 pm
I am sorry I missed Palin’s speech. I would have liked to hear her stance on this issue w/o reading about it online.
Something I did notice that all the talk is about children with Down Syndrome. Somewhere in there, children with other disabilities has been forgotten.
This world is not about people with Down Syndrome. It is about all people (children and adults) with disabilities and their rights.
I have a daughter with disabilities. And the diagnosis? Unknown!!!!!!!! People who have children with Down Syndrome are what I would say “lucky”. They at least have a diagnosis. With that diagnosis, they are more able to know what kind of services their child needs.
But, with a child whose disabilities are unknown, it’s more of a challenge. It is trial and error to find what will work to help them educationally, independently, cognitively, and physically.
As of yet, I have not read where Palin, attended functions to raise awareness of people with disabilities and helped raise money or changed policies to help these people and their families.
Saying you will do it and doing it is two different things.
Exactly what is she proposing to do to help the people and their families? That is what I would like to know.
I will not vote for someone just because they have a child with Down Syndrome. Palin having a very young child with Down syndrome, does not make her a “true” advocate for people with disabilities. She does not have enough experience.
From experience, a person with a 2-month-old child with special needs does not qualify them to have a true understanding with the needs of all people with disabilities. It takes a person who has dealt with this for many years whether personal experience or in settings like schools, day care, therapy services, services for adults with disabilities, and other situations.
Daily I work with children who have special needs. I turned my degree around to be able to help my daughter and other families/children. Some of these parents are not advocates for their children who have disabilities. They go with what I say is “the flow”.
I have fought for years to get my daughter the services she needs. I had to go out on my own and seek these services and make individuals, schools, etc. abide by Public Law 94-142 (IDEA).
I have learned a lot over the years of personal experience plus providing therapy services to children in schools, day care, and homes. I also help teach the parents what they can do to help their child, be an advocate for these families and let the parents/guardians know what services are out there for their child.
To end this comment: I would not have had an abortion if I knew of the disabilities my child would have. Her disabilities are nothing compared to what I have seen. I have seen children that are completely confined to their bed, that stay on oxygen and feeding tubes 24 hrs a day just to survive. These babies have a very slim chance to survive.
I understand the “right to life”, but the question to all this is………..how much should we make a child suffer just for this advocacy “right to life”.
Have you ever been in these homes with these families who have a child who is hanging on by a thread and you never know from minute to minute how much time their child has left in this world. Many people have to quit their jobs to stay home and have lost homes, vehicles, and other things just to take care of their child.
SO who are you to decide what some would/should do. Until you truly have to put yourself in that position, I do not think you would immediately respond with “right to life”. I think you would have to go home and talk this out with family/friends/supporters to decide how much pain and suffering are you willing to put your child through and your family.