Writing in the [UK] Independent, columnist Dominic Lawson praises Paralympic equestrian Lee Pearson and laments the eugenic thinking that he sees reflected in the widespread use of prenatal screening for disabilities, most often Down syndrome.

Lawson reports on a recent study by Down Syndrome Education International that found that genetic screening and testing for Down syndrome is causing miscarriages of fetuses that don’t have the condition. He said the report also makes clear that doctors are advising pregnant women to have the test by giving them “anachronistically bleak” medical advice about Down syndrome.

Republican vice-presidential nominee Sarah Palin is one of a small minority of women who decide to carry to term a baby diagnosed with Down syndrome, Lawson says, and some of her political opponents see that decision “as a hostile political act.” An excerpt:

The idea that Sarah Palin made her decision as an act of love, rather than of politics, is clearly incomprehensible to some.

… By making baby Trig into a known individual, rather than a mere statistic of chromosomal abnormality, the Palins are helping the wider world to understand the crucial point: that every person with disabilities is different, not defined collectively by their limitations, but individually -– like all of us –- by unique personalities and aspirations. It is exactly the same lesson that has been taught to us by Lee Pearson.

Lawson is interviewed about the Down Syndrome Education International study on the UK’s Channel 4. Video is here.

(Photo from the Independent)

This entry was posted on Wednesday, September 17th, 2008 at 11:42 am and is filed under Down syndrome, abortion, disabilities, eugenics, exercise/sports, families, genetics, intellectual/developmental disabilities, prenatal diagnosis, public attitudes, selective termination. 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.  Email This Post