It is World Down Syndrome Day, I learn today from this article:
For World Down Syndrome Day 2012, I wish I could write more on the gifts that our fellow citizens with Down syndrome give to their families, friends, community and the world. The fact of the matter is, though, that unless regulations and laws are changed, there will be fewer people with Down syndrome to celebrate on future World Down Syndrome Days, making this year the high water mark of lives with Down syndrome. Because these individuals should be celebrated, they deserve more and better representation by those who have sworn oaths to their medical profession to do no harm, and by others who have sworn to provide equal justice for all, and to promote the general welfare to ourselves and our posterity.
When you have come to view abortion as the killing of the powerless by the powerful, as I do, then there is no more egregious an example of this than the targeted killing of those with disabilities. (Filing under eugenics.)
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As I write this, I am listening to my youngest daughter, who happens to have Down Syndrome, play with her older sisters. It is a beautiful sound. She loves them so intensely and that love from her brings out the best in them.
I can speak from experience, our world is a better place for having someone with Down Syndrome in it. It’s hard to explain to the skeptical why it is that the vulnerable, the powerless, the so-called weak or disabled make life so much richer for those who live close to them. Before my daughter was born, I would have been a little bit skeptical of such “Hallmark sentiments” myself. But I have lived it for the last seven years and the purity and innocence, of my youngest daughter brings something unique to our family, her school and our community. Her gifts and her infectious embracing of life and of the people she encounters are so often able to break through any barriers imposed by her condition, and her breaching of those barriers is a joy to behold.
The horror of eugenics lies not just in what it says about our society, that we think it somehow acceptable to eliminate the less-than-perfect, although that fact is horrible enough. But eugenics also impoverishes the lives of those allowed to survive We risk a world denuded of the texture, the colour, the vibrancy of people who are different from our so-called perfect selves. How pathetic!
Beautifully put, Patricia. My aunt had DS and lived to nearly 72. She brought nothing but goodness to everyone around her – how many of us “normal” people will be able to make that claim at the end of our lives?
Hello,
We have a daughter with Down Syndrome who is now 24 years old. She has brought so much joy and laughter to our family. Her enthusiasm is so infectious. She loves everyone and is always game to try anything new. She keeps us all grounded with what is really important in life – love of family and friends. She isn’t greedy, competitive, ambitious, mean, selfish etc. She lives in her own world going about her daily activities and loving everyone she meets. In return all she asks is to be loved and respected for who she is. Her imperfections may be easier to see than “normal” people. What you see is what you get with her. There is no malice in her because she is all loving. I tell my other children she will get us to heaven for by the way we treat her will we also be judged.
I have a down syndrome baby of 12+. He took 7 years to speak. Continuously 5 years I had gone to a speech therapist for him. Still he has some problem but can dance, read and write. He is now in class II. I hope he will gain some skills on guitar, dance and he is very much cooperative with others.