Democrat Legislator: “Women Have Every Right” to Abort Babies Just Because They Have Down Syndrome
It’s difficult for abortion activists to argue against legislation that would protect unborn babies from discrimination because of their sex or abilities, but they certainly are trying in Ohio.
Earlier this week, Ohio state House lawmakers passed a bill to prohibit abortions on unborn babies with Down syndrome. Babies with the genetic disorder are some of the most targeted for abortion, with abortion rates at nearly 100 percent in Iceland and as high as 90 percent in the United States.
But abortion activists with NARAL and other radical pro-abortion groups think a woman should be able to abort an unborn baby for any reason, including discrimination.
Arguing against the bill this week, pro-abortion Ohio state Rep. Brigid Kelly told Bustlethat she believes women should be able to decide to have an abortion for any reason without government interference.
“Abortion is legal in the United States,” Kelly said. “I think that women have every right to make the medical decisions that are appropriate for themselves and for their families.”
Kelly supported an amendment that basically would have nullified the bill by making it so that no women has to explain her reasons for the abortion, according to the report. However, the amendment did not pass.
Here’s more from the pro-abortion blog:
Opponents of the Ohio bill also say it would hinder open conversations between pregnant women and their doctors, and do nothing to help those with Down syndrome in the state. “This bill will totally offend this relationship,” Ohio Rep. Emilia Strong Sykes said, “not allowing honest discourse between a physician and patient.” According to a 2012 study by the medical journal Prenatal Diagnosis, 50 to 85 percent of American women whose fetus has a Down syndrome diagnosis opt for an abortion, USA Today reported.
Jaime Miracle, deputy director of NARAL Pro-Choice Ohio, made similar statements earlier this month when she said the government should never get involved in a woman’s abortion decision, no matter what her reason is.
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“It’s not our place to judge a woman and her decision on whether or not to continue a pregnancy for whatever reason it is,” the pro-abortion leader said. “It is that woman’s decision to make alone, and nobody in this building or anywhere else should be making that decision for someone else.”
The Down Syndrome Non-Discrimination Act (Ohio House Bill 214) would help prevent discrimination by prohibiting abortions on unborn babies who have or may have Down syndrome. Abortionists who violate the measure could be charged with a fourth-degree felony or lose their medical license.
State Rep. Sarah LaTourette, a pro-life Republican who sponsored the bill, said the abortion statistics for unborn babies diagnosed with Down syndrome are staggering.
“When we hear the statistic that 90 percent of women chose abortion because of this potential diagnosis, there’s an obvious problem there,” LaTourette said.
“I continue to say that this bill is about so much more than abortion,” she continued. “I truly believe that it’s about discriminating against some of our most vulnerable, discriminating against an unborn child simply because they might have a Down Syndrome diagnosis. That’s something that I find absolutely unacceptable.”
Around the world and here in America, unborn babies diagnosed with Down syndrome are aborted at an extremely high rate. Recent news reports have revealed these alarming trends in European countries like Denmark where 98 percent of babies with a positive diagnosis are aborted and in Iceland where virtually 100 percent are aborted.
Last week, advocate Frank Stephens who has Down syndrome testified before the United States Congress, referencing these reports and saying, “I am a man with Down syndrome, and my life is worth living.”
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