Breathtaking and Heartbreaking

90 percent of pregnant women who are given a Down syndrome diagnosis have chosen to have an abortion.

When I was in college I worked a couple of summers as a counselor at a camp for the developmentally disabled. My ex also has a sister, Karla, who was born with a mental handicap. I've seen, and heard from his parents, how hard it can be to raise a child with her needs. Of course I can't imagine what it would be like as a parent to find out your child was going to be born with such an affliction, but I also can't imagine not having known and loved the children at that camp or Karla.

There is a positive note in the article:

Convinced that more couples would choose to continue their pregnancies if they better appreciated what it meant to raise a child with Down syndrome, a growing group of parents are seeking to insert their own positive perspectives into a decision often dominated by daunting medical statistics and doctors who feel obligated to describe the difficulties of life with a disabled child.

They are pressing obstetricians to send them couples who have been given a prenatal diagnosis and inviting prospective parents into their homes to meet their children. In Massachusetts, for example, volunteers in a “first call” network linking veteran parents to new ones are now offering support to couples deciding whether to continue a pregnancy.

The parent evangelists are driven by a deep-seated fear for their children’s well-being in a world where there are fewer people like them. But as prenatal tests become available for a range of other perceived genetic imperfections, they may also be heralding a broader cultural skirmish over where to draw the line between preventing disability and accepting human diversity.

Have mercy on us God.