This is Down Syndrome Awareness Month

By Tom Quiner

What a beautiful day.

Karen and I took a leisurely walk through the park late Saturday afternoon.

We were removed from the buzz of the city, allowing us to soak in the rich sounds of nature.

As we walked along the quiet bike trail, an occasional biker would pass us with a cry of “on your left!” We didn’t see any other walkers until we headed back, when we encountered two men, one of whom was pushing a double baby carriage.

The man pushing the carriage looked like the grandpa, the other, the father of the twins.

Of course, Karen and I stopped to admire the babies who couldn’t have been more than a few months old.

They were both beautiful. They had Down Syndrome.

After cooing over the boys a few minutes, we moved on.

As we walked, Karen and I discussed the challenge the parents will have raising two children with Down Syndrome at the same time.

Our nephew, Danny, was born with Down Syndrome. We have friends and acquaintances with Down children.

And yet they love them the same as their other children. Lovability isn’t predicated by perfection.

I didn’t think anymore about the encounter in the park until I read a USA editorial on the subject. They were making a repugnant case for late term abortion so parents with “defective” fetuses could have a human abortion performed.

Here is how they made their case:

“Moreover, many grave, even lethal fetal anomalies aren’t discovered until or near 20 weeks, at which point some women decide to terminate a pregnancy. Bans will prevent reputable doctors from performing those abortions, leaving a void that criminals such as Gosnell will slither in to fill.

While some genetic conditions, such as Down syndrome, can be detected with amniocentesis at 16 to 22 weeks, even then it can take two weeks to get results. Add specialists, research and time to reflect, and a 20-week ban forces women and couples to make heartrending decisions against a ticking clock.

The operating principle, according to the USA editorial board, is that imperfection is an especially good reason to end a human life, that human life is disposable if he or she is unwanted because of physical flaws.

The Democratic Party supports the principle. Texas Democratic candidate for Governor, Wendy Davis, is leading the charge in the Lone Star state to keep the genocidal practice of late term abortion alive.

Genocidal? Yes, genocidal.

Since science discovered a way to identify those children who carry that distinctive, extra chromosome, children with Down Syndrome began to disappear. Up to 95% of them are aborted before they ever have a chance to make their mark on the world.

If that’s not genocide, what is?

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