Down Syndrome Teen Elected Prom King, Goes To College
I am a liberal, Jewish, pro-choice Democrat. I find Sarah Palin to be scarily conservative, excessively religious and alarmingly ignorant. I would never vote for any ticket she was on. I do, however, absolutely respect one thing about her: her decision not to abort her son with Down Syndrome, as 80% of parents do.
I never had to make that decision. But I do have a son with autism, and – like many parents of children with disabilities – have a big problem with the assumption that children who are less intelligent are somehow less human or deserving of life than “normal” kids. And more and more people with Down Syndrome are challenging those long-held beliefs all the time, by greatly exceeding society’s expectations of what a “retarded” individual should be capable of achieving.
Take Zach Wincent, for example. This 19-year-old from Illinois hasn’t let Down Syndrome keep him from racking up an impressive list of accomplishments, including being elected prom king, taking classes through the special needs program at Elgin Community College, coaching ice hockey, and working at Target.
Maybe, for some parents, working at Target isn’t a high enough aspiration. I used to be one of those parents – before I had kids, I would imagine my future offspring and think, I don’t care if they’re cute, I just want them to be smart. But I’ve come to understand that even if my four typical kids go on to Ivy League educations and six-figure jobs, it’s unlikely they’ll make any greater contribution to society than their autistic brother, who’s already inspired the college student who worked with him to go to graduate school and pursue research in autism. Maybe she will be the PhD who discovers the cure.
Now, my one great hope for all five of my kids is that they’ll be happy. Zach Wincent seems really happy. And would anyone really suggest that his happy life is not just as valuable and important and inspiring as anyone else’s?
Wincent Family Photo
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Palin also believes women should not be allowed to have an abortion even in cases of rape or incest, so the fact that she chose to have him doesn’t hold much water with me. And I don’t see her spending any time with the poor kid anyway, especially since she CHOSE to return to work 3 days after giving birth. Not especially heroic.
Geez Colleen….even if your claim is true, Palin could have flown to another state for an abortion. She did CHOOSE to have baby Trig. Even if you dislike her as a candidate, it’s pretty cynical of you to claim that she manipulated the truth for political gain.
I am politically liberal, pro-choice and a feminist and will be voting Obama. BUT I completely respect Palin on this issue and don’t see why my other liberal friends feel the need to tear her down just because they don’t agree with her politics.
My prenatal screenings tested positive for Downs Syndrome. The doctors encouraged me to have an amnio to “determine” whether or not the baby definitely had Downs. And their attitude definitely implied that most mothers want the amnio so they can make a decision to terminate the pregnancy. They noted that they could provide access to a “genetic counselor” following the amnio who would have resources and advice.
I found the whole attitude a bit horrifying since I PLANNED my pregnancy and made a choice to get pregnant. So I just didn’t think it would be moral for me to decide to terminate my pregnancy because I only wanted a “perfect” child. As it turned out, my son was born without Downs. But he would have been wanted and loved not matter what.
It is my understanding that Palin wasn’t informed that Trig had Down Syndrome until she was 22 weeks pregnant. This is too late for a legal abortion in Alaska. For her to suggest, then, that she made the decision is either simple manipulation of the truth for political gain or a suggestion that she is above the law and could have done otherwise.
That’s right, you didn’t have to make that decision (to terminate). But don’t think the people who did wanted or loved their children any less then people that continue their pregnancies. As someone who terminated for medical reasons (not Downs), I take offense to the comment “working at Target” may not be good enough, or that I lack compassion and decency. There are many reasons why 80% of people terminate Downs pregnancies. Please don’t think it’s because of an assumption they are less deserving of a happy life.
I totally agree with you. On everything. Little Trig Palin is – to me – the finest evidence that Sarah P. has a shred of compassion, decency and courage. I disagree with her on everything (as far as I know), but I completely respect her decision to “keep” Trig. Incidentally my dear friend’s son has Down syndrome & is in a college program, working a part-time job. He still lives with mom and dad (at 21 going on 22), but he is a joyful man whose sunshiney outlook is infectious – who can argue with that? He is most certainly adding value to our community.