The figure to the left is from a piece in The MIT Technology Review, A Change of Mind. It profiles Diana Bianchi, a researcher who was involved in pioneering tests to discover Down Syndrome early in utero, but now is working on curing the disease. Here is a delicate aspect:
… She says that early testing will lead to the first treatments for Down syndrome. With the ability to routinely detect the syndrome as early as 10 weeks of pregnancy, she says, the tests are creating the chance to develop drugs that address cognitive deficits in the womb. “Plenty of people think that their children with Down syndrome are perfect the way they are,” says Bianchi. “But there are also plenty of people who, if given the choice, would want to attempt to treat their children.” Critics of testing “don’t know the complete picture,” she says. “They don’t realize there is another half to the equation.”
The idea that children with Down Syndrome are “perfect” the way they are is a testament to an aspect of our society today which transcends ideology and subculture. The way we are is asserted to be the way we ought to be. We are all beautiful, we are all talented, we are all equal. The reality is that this is simply not true. Humans are very diverse. In some cases that diversity means that some have more than others. The intelligent, the beautiful, and the healthy, have what those without would like to have. In some cases the traits may seem trivial. Taller men have an easier time finding a sexual partner, obtaining a leadership position, and earn more over their lifetime. Height may seem a superficial trait, but has enormous consequences over one’s life.
Diana Bianchi is now trying to fix the developmental abnormalities, often triggered by the non-wild type karyotype, of individuals with Down Syndrome. But the reporting in this piece suggests many in the Down Syndrome community are ambivalent about a cure, though some are supportive. After all, a “fix” implies a problem, which many will not admit. My own question is why pro-life organizations and individuals don’t fund Bianchi’s research to the hilt?
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