Woman with Down syndrome speaks out against abortion: ‘I have a right to live’

The United Nations Human Rights Committee recently met to draft its interpretation of the right to life — and yet spent much of the time affirming the “right” to abortion instead. Yadh Ben Achour, a Tunisian lawyer and member of the committee, made comments regarding Down syndrome and abortion that show he is not particularly interested in protecting human rights — at least not for individuals he deems inferior.

Achour claims that he is a “defender of the handicapped” and disabled, but he also believes women should abort preborn babies who receive a prenatal diagnosis:

It actually is, in fact, contradictory. You can’t argue that you’re an ardent defender of the handicapped, say that you want to protect people with disabilities and that you support people with disabilities, while also arguing that they should be killed for those same disabilities, never having the chance to be born at all.

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Perhaps Mr. Achour should consult with people with disabilities, whom he wants to eradicate, and see how they feel. They’re more than willing to speak up. Charlotte Fien is one of them, and she made international headlines when she addressed the UN earlier this year. Fien — who has both Down syndrome and autism — told the assembly that she has a right to live. Now, she’s written an open letter in response to Achour’s horrific comments.

Fien published her open letter to Achour on Facebook, also sending a letter directly to the United Nations, slamming Achour for his ableist comments:

Fien is far from alone in speaking out against despicable comments directed towards people with Down syndrome and other disabilities. And sadly, those comments are not uncommon — nor are the actual abortions themselves. In Iceland, the abortion rate for preborn babies diagnosed with Down syndrome is almost 100 percent. An episode of”60 Minutes Australia” positively featured a test that was described as able to “effectively end Down syndrome” in Australia. In the Netherlands, women are told they have a moral duty to abort their babies with Down syndrome. Here in the United States, women are routinely given outdated, inaccurate information about Down syndrome, according to a study published by Dr. Brian Skotko, while another study found that women were given a prenatal diagnosis in a negative way, at a rate of 2.5 to 1. One in four women said they were pressured to have an abortion. The examples go on and on and on and on.

It’s unfathomable that people are being targeted for death and eradication simply because they are different. Disability doesn’t mean less than; it doesn’t mean their lives are not worth living. And it absolutely does not make someone like Mr. Achour superior and able to determine whether or not someone should be permitted to live.