Gulp. I got to write an opinion piece for the New York Times about prenatal tests and Down syndrome.
There are all sorts of problems with the prenatal testing industry that I don’t even get in to in this essay. Companies often market their products in misleading ways, and these products are unregulated by the FDA. What’s more, as I did discuss in the essay, many genetic counselors and physicians who offer these tests don’t provide the information they are supposed to provide according to their own codes of conduct.
BUT, there’s a deeper problem underneath all of this which has to do with the way we receive human life, and particularly the question of whether we can welcome human life as a gift in whatever diverse form that life takes. This is not an argument about individual women making hard choices. This is an argument about a whole society turning away from seeing persons as consumers and producers and instead seeing one another as beloved and doing whatever it takes, even at a cost, to support vulnerable and diverse lives.
Here’s a quote from the essay:
“The assumptions behind our prenatal testing programs condition parents — and society as a whole — to see our kids as valuable according to their physical strength, intellectual capacity, and social acuity rather than setting us up to receive their lives as they are given.”
To read the full article, go here.
Read more with Amy Julia:
- Article: I’m Thankful Every Day for the Decision I Made After My Prenatal Tests
- A Good and Perfect Gift: Faith, Expectations, and a Little Girl Named Penny
- Missing Out on Beautiful essay collection
- What’s Wrong With Having Down Syndrome?
If you haven’t already, you can subscribe to receive regular updates and news. You can also follow me on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest, YouTube, and Goodreads, and you can subscribe to my Love Is Stronger Than Fear podcast on your favorite podcast platform.
