I have met men with Down Syndrome who were wise and empathetic, not to mention mostly self-sufficient.
I have met men without Down Syndrome who were foolish and self-centered, not to mention utterly incapable of taking care of themselves.
The right of a woman (I could end the clause there but I’ll continue with) to freely decide what to do with the fetus she is carrying, nurturing, growing within her own body, needs to be accepted as part of the foundation of a civilization in which the power dynamics that have strangled human societies for millenia are not just disrupted but dissolved.
The life of a parent given a child with unexpected needs and unfamiliar challenges – faced with raising that child in a society that does not value post-natal life, does not value social support, does not value difference of any kind, be it neurological or cultural – stumbling forward with no resources and no guidebook and no relief – is not an easy life.
Hold those truths in your heart…
And also hold some grief for a potential human being – who could have grown into a wise, loving, capable person – who was never given a chance to become anything at all.