When Kate Cox sued the state of Texas earlier this month hoping a judge would allow her to abort her baby at 21 weeks, her story spread rapidly across the media. She claimed she wanted to do what was “best” for her daughter but asked the court to allow a D&E abortion which is carried out by dismemberment.
Abortion advocates rallied around Cox, arguing that her daughter should die by dismemberment D&E abortion rather than be born and “suffer,” fully ignoring how a child at 21 weeks is pain-capable and dismemberment isn’t a way anyone would wish to die. They agreed with Cox that she should be able to kill her preborn daughter due to her disability, and try again for a healthy baby.
Even Connecticut Governor Ned Lamont got in on the action, urging Cox to come to his abortion haven state so the abortionists there can participate in killing her child. “We have a safe harbor rule here and I said, you’re welcome to a state like Connecticut, where you respect a woman’s right to choose,” said Lamont. “We’re a firewall. We’re not going to let those that want to take away people’s freedoms in other states try and bring that here.”
But then, families of individuals with Trisomy 18 began firing back at the discriminatory remarks and the widespread support for the baby girl’s killing.
Faith Smith
Grace Fisher, whose sister Faith Smith has Trisomy 18, shared her heartfelt thoughts about her sister and Cox’s baby.
“The baby who my parents were told was ‘incompatible with life’ and a ‘fetal fatal anomaly’ was a bridesmaid in my wedding in May,” she wrote, continuing (emphasis added):
And turns out she’s no longer a baby. Faith is going to be 15 years old in just a few days. As we are looking forward to celebrating her life, there is a mother in Texas seeking to murder her child. Because her baby is going to be like Faith. A death sentence because her baby is going to be different.
Being 20 weeks pregnant with my own child, I have a new perspective on what being the expecting mom is like. And I have to say it’s made it even more unfathomable to me that the answer to the possibility of suffering is to kill the child.
Death is not a cure. It’s not compassionate to rip a baby to pieces. The child in the womb with a significant diagnosis is not unworthy of life.
Faith loves her life!! Trisomy 18 is what she has, but it is not who she is. She is funny, kind, loving, brave, beautiful, and joyful. Her diagnosis does not dictate her value. Her worth is not dependent on what a doctor says. She is beautifully and wonderfully made.
And so is Kate Cox’s baby.
Baby Abel
In a video that reached a million views on TikTok before being censored, Jessie shared the story of her son Abel, who had Trisomy 18. Abel had been a twin and Jessie and her husband opted for medical intervention for Abel at birth. He would later pass away at seven months old in his mother’s arms.
“My trisomy 18 baby never threatened my life, or the life of his twin brother,” Jessie said in the video. “His life blessed ours in so many ways. All he knew was love. I’m so grateful for these memories. We have been so blessed by his beautiful life. No one knows how long they have… I’m so thankful for our 210 days.”
She also wrote, “Turns out, the meaning of life is simple. It’s the celebration of any life. No matter limitation or duration, the meaning of life is the beauty of life no matter the timelines.”
When Abel died, she knew “how absolutely meaningful, profound and purposeful his life was.”
More families share their stories of life with Trisomy 18
An Instagram post from Live Action founder and president Lila Rose discussed Cox’s case and garnered nearly 20,000 likes. Among the nearly 1,000 comments were those from family members of people living with Trisomy 18.
View this post on Instagram
Tiffany, whose five-year-old daughter has Trisomy 18, wrote (emphasis added):
Our community has kids as old as 42 in it. My daughter is five years old and a very loved member of our family. This diagnosis is full spectrum, just like all things in life, and not the black and white, one-size-applies-to-all label that they are making this out to be.
The defamation and lies being said about this diagnosis and our children isn’t only just untrue, it’s actually incredibly dangerous. it’s furthering outdated statistics and personal opinions about our kids that make it very hard to get unbiased, supportive medical care.
What this woman has been told is one possible outcome, leaving out all the rest of the possible outcomes and sadly, this isn’t uncommon in the experience of newly diagnosed parents.
The mother of Harper Grace commented (emphasis added):
I’m an RN and my daughter, Harper Grace has full trisomy 18 and is almost 7 years old. Shes leading a phenomenal life. …. The statistics surrounding trisomy 18 are heavily skewed. The mortality rate does NOT take into consideration which babies actually died in utero naturally, vs those that were aborted. They’re all clumped together making the prenatal death rate much higher.
In terms of those who die ‘shortly after birth’ those statistics don’t say how many were denied any medical care whatsoever, resulting in death. If I had cancer and left it untreated it’s 100% fatal. If you have heart disease and heart failure and leave it untreated, that TOO is 100% fatal. This case is an extreme push for eugenics against those who are born differently abled. It’s disgusting.
No child deserves to die by dismemberment simply because they have a health diagnosis. New research is showing that children with Trisomy 18 are not destined to die at birth as previously believed. When given proper medical care, such as life-saving heart surgery, newborns with the condition have a 90% discharge rate.
“Giving these kids medical care makes it possible for them to live past a year,” said Faith’s doctor Dr. Glenn Green. “We know that there are things that can be done.”
