Is this a slippery slope I see before me...
The Sunday Times October 7, 2007
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/health/article2603965.ece
Disabled 15 year-old girl to lose womb
Doctors are preparing to remove the womb of a disabled teenager
because her mother fears she will not cope with the complications of
adulthood.
====================================================
The Sunday Times October 7, 2007
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/health/article2604771.ece
Keep my daughter a child, pleads mother
Every year Alison Thorpe sees her daughter’s life getting tougher. A
victim of severe cerebral palsy, the 15-year-old is too big for
pastimes that used to bring her joy.
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OK. For those who don’t know. I am a woman with cerebral palsy. Many of the women on my friendslist have cerebral palsy, ranging from mild to severe forms. Many of the women with disabilities I have known in my life have also got cerebral palsy, ranging from mild to severe forms.
In view of this, I feel I *am* qualified to comment, despite what the parents of this girl, and of Ashley X, would like to think. Many of the activists fighting against this invasion of bodily integrity are women with disabilities, and/or people with CP. We live with the realities of disability every single day of our lives. We do know what we are talking about. There are other options. These families act like they are the first to ever deal with children with disabilities growing older. Bullshit. Thousands of families have been there before, and have not resorted to such drastic measures. They have found ways of coping. And if they are not coping, they need to be given support. Funding for assistance, for workshops on menstruation management for caregivers, noninvasive medical alternatives. Women with disabilities, including those women with severe forms of disabilities have the right to whole bodies, bodies that are not carved into for no medical reason other than to make life convenient for caregivers, or to spare people from the awareness that PWD do grow up, and become adults.
Oh, and just for the record - reducing someone’s external sex characteristics (ie amputating both breasts, as happened to Ashley X), does not, and never will reduce the risk of sexual abuse. For gods sake, babies, infants, toddlers, pre-pubescent children of both sexes, ablebodied and disabled, are abused in horrifying numbers. Mutilating someone’s body is never the answer - especially when it would never be countenanced for ablebodied children.
And by the way, there is no such thing as a ‘victim’ of cerebral palsy. It is not some horrible spectre deliberately stalking people. It’s just there. It’s not the worst thing in the world - more than a few aspects of it can be difficult, depending on circumstances, but practical and emotional support, and being treated with dignity and respect, can go a long way towards living a good life. And needing assistance with toileting and other personal care tasks is not inherently undignified or degrading - unless people around you behave like it is.
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/health/article2603965.ece
Disabled 15 year-old girl to lose womb
Doctors are preparing to remove the womb of a disabled teenager
because her mother fears she will not cope with the complications of
adulthood.
====================================================
The Sunday Times October 7, 2007
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/health/article2604771.ece
Keep my daughter a child, pleads mother
Every year Alison Thorpe sees her daughter’s life getting tougher. A
victim of severe cerebral palsy, the 15-year-old is too big for
pastimes that used to bring her joy.
----------
OK. For those who don’t know. I am a woman with cerebral palsy. Many of the women on my friendslist have cerebral palsy, ranging from mild to severe forms. Many of the women with disabilities I have known in my life have also got cerebral palsy, ranging from mild to severe forms.
In view of this, I feel I *am* qualified to comment, despite what the parents of this girl, and of Ashley X, would like to think. Many of the activists fighting against this invasion of bodily integrity are women with disabilities, and/or people with CP. We live with the realities of disability every single day of our lives. We do know what we are talking about. There are other options. These families act like they are the first to ever deal with children with disabilities growing older. Bullshit. Thousands of families have been there before, and have not resorted to such drastic measures. They have found ways of coping. And if they are not coping, they need to be given support. Funding for assistance, for workshops on menstruation management for caregivers, noninvasive medical alternatives. Women with disabilities, including those women with severe forms of disabilities have the right to whole bodies, bodies that are not carved into for no medical reason other than to make life convenient for caregivers, or to spare people from the awareness that PWD do grow up, and become adults.
Oh, and just for the record - reducing someone’s external sex characteristics (ie amputating both breasts, as happened to Ashley X), does not, and never will reduce the risk of sexual abuse. For gods sake, babies, infants, toddlers, pre-pubescent children of both sexes, ablebodied and disabled, are abused in horrifying numbers. Mutilating someone’s body is never the answer - especially when it would never be countenanced for ablebodied children.
And by the way, there is no such thing as a ‘victim’ of cerebral palsy. It is not some horrible spectre deliberately stalking people. It’s just there. It’s not the worst thing in the world - more than a few aspects of it can be difficult, depending on circumstances, but practical and emotional support, and being treated with dignity and respect, can go a long way towards living a good life. And needing assistance with toileting and other personal care tasks is not inherently undignified or degrading - unless people around you behave like it is.