I'm an American but studied abroad in Denmark for around 6 months. When I was there, I found out that the Nordic countries have virtually eradicated down syndrome by testing pregnant people for it. 99% choose to abort. How do you guys feel about this?
Personally this is quite disturbing to me. I've known people with down syndrome who live happy, quality lives. Even if it is up to the mother whether or not to abort, when it happens 99% of the time, is it not cultural eugenics? It seems the culture is almost afraid of taking care of a child with down syndrome. Especially in one of the wealthiest countries in the world, where the resources to take care of them are more widely available. If you could test for other things like autism, or even something like extreme depression, would yall do the same thing?
EDIT: I am strongly pro choice and I have talked to many American people on both sides of the political spectrum about this and they unanimously agree with me. On an individual level, I support everyones right to make their own decisions, but when it gets to the population level it becomes more of a cultural issue. There seems to be a cultural agreement that children with down syndrome are too difficult to care for. Does that make it ok to eradicate them? I honestly don't know
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The original was posted on /r/denmark by /u/queen_bs at 2024-03-13 15:12:18+00:00.
therapistuncle at 2024-03-13 18:23:25+00:00 ID:
kupphaoMen with downs syndrome are sterile, and there’s a multitude of chromosome flaws that give horrible lives such as pataus or edwards syndrome - do you think those should be kept around as well, or is it just the ones that you deem cute?
If it was possible to cull smug holier-than-thou people before birth I am not sure you’d be around.
queen_bs (OP) at 2024-03-13 18:57:53+00:00 ID:
kupvsowThanks for being so kind!
My question is where do you draw the line? If down syndrome is ok to eradicate by abortion, is the same true for autism? For depression? Cancer? I'm not trying to put you down, this issue is only going to get more prevalent with new technologies and asking where to draw the line is valid
Acceptable_Coat_9515 at 2024-03-13 19:08:08+00:00 ID:
kupxnfkLet me ask something for clarification. Is it the prospect of there being no more people with Down’s syndrome in the world that you’re upset about, or the fact that it is “achieved” through abortions specifically that you don’t like? (“Achieved” in quotes because as has been mentioned numerous times, there is no bigger plan behind it it’s simply the sum of individual choices).
In other words, if having a child with Down’s syndrome could be avoided by somehow screening before fertilisation, would you have an issue with that too?
queen_bs (OP) at 2024-03-13 19:41:19+00:00 ID:
kuq3oz3If there was a way to genetically modify an egg/fetus so that it would not have down syndrome, I would be for that 100% because that would be a cure. If down syndrome was cured the world would be a better place, and those who would have had it would be able to live normal lives.
However that's not currently possible and i'm wondering if abortion is the morally right response when we can detect it but can't cure it. I wonder if you asked families with a child with down syndrome if they could go back in time would they abort? Id be curious to see if this aligns with the abortion statistics. If not, then maybe down syndrome is perceived as more harmful than it actually is
therapistuncle at 2024-03-13 19:56:18+00:00 ID:
kuq6fdzyou are under the misconception that these things are not functionally the same. It is not like their existance is planned out at conception and we are snuffing it out, they are simply not brought in to this world. Selecting to carry a downs syndrome child to term is all kinds of selfish or because you believe in some made up bullshit, which is just as bad.
Ok-Cow-1900 at 2024-03-13 20:10:27+00:00 ID:
kuq90y0For some reason this troll believes that you have a right to be born... Claims to be pro choice, but also think.the choice people make are morally wrong lmao.
queen_bs (OP) at 2024-03-13 20:22:58+00:00 ID:
kuqbc4oIt's not the choice that is morally wrong, it's the stigma that having a child with down syndrome will ruin your life that is morally wrong
Ok-Cow-1900 at 2024-03-13 20:26:02+00:00 ID:
kuqbwemNo one is saying it ruins our lives, it places a greater burden and it makes sure that the child will have a shit life.
At this point I can only come to three conclusions, either you have DS, you are trolling or you are religious.
queen_bs (OP) at 2024-03-13 19:49:30+00:00 ID:
kuq56sihttps://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3353148/#:~:text=Of%20the%202%2C044%20respondents%2C%2099,and%204%25%20regretted%20having%20them.
Only 4% of families say they regret having their child with down syndrome
therapistuncle at 2024-03-13 19:58:03+00:00 ID:
kuq6r1iask all the people who had abortions if they would have kept the child if they knew it would come out with downs syndrome and you get a statistic which is every bit as useless as the one you are referring to
silversprings99 at 2024-03-13 21:03:08+00:00 ID:
kuqiq16What kind of logic is that? If they got an abortion, they didn't want a child, period. They probably didn't even consider DS a possibility and they still chose not to have it
therapistuncle at 2024-03-13 21:28:06+00:00 ID:
kuqn933stop injecting common sende into our bullshit discussion
therapistuncle at 2024-03-13 19:12:04+00:00 ID:
kupycypmy question was where do YOU draw the line, but you decided not to answer that, and pulled some whataboutism out your ass instead. You are trying to bait people into saying that autism should be eradicated as well, and sure i’ll bite: full blown autism needing lifelong care: nip it in the bud if you want, or keep it, i don’t give a shit.