When tests reveal that preborn babies have Down syndrome, the majority of women decide to abort. Here are the reflections of one woman who has a child with Down syndrome:
Whenever I am out with Margaret, I’m conscious that she represents a group whose ranks are shrinking because of the wide availability of prenatal testing and abortion. I don’t know how many pregnancies are terminated because of prenatal diagnosis of Down syndrome, but some studies estimate 80 to 90 percent… Margaret does not view her life as unremitting human suffering (although she is angry that I haven’t bought her an iPod).
She’s consumed with more important things, like the performance of the Boston Red Sox in the playoffs and the dance she’s going to this weekend. Oh sure, she wishes she could learn faster and have better math skills. So do I. But it doesn’t ruin our day, much less our lives. It’s the negative social attitudes that cause us to suffer.
Patricia E. Bauer “Selective Abortion Is Immoral” in Lucinda Almond The Abortion Controversy (New York: Greenhaven Press, 2007) 25-26
