By Dave Andrusko

Sarah Palin and Trig, when he was a baby

I'm sure most of you are aware of the tremendously hurtful back-and-forth over a series of attacks on former Gov. Sarah Palin. No, not over her politics, that's fair game. Rather, it's over whether it's okay to make fun of her son Trig, who has Down syndrome, or to suggest that the Palin family made a "mistake" in allowing Trig to be born. The attacks on the Palins, defended on "free speech" grounds and/or as an example of "humor," make you cringe at these people's "who, me?" cruelty.

Yesterday a friend sent me a powerful story that appeared last week in a Canadian newspaper, the Globe and Mail. Sue Robins' "There's no such thing as the perfect child" appeared in a section titled "Facts & Argument Essay." You can read the essay in its entirety at www.theglobeandmail.com/life/facts-and-arguments/theres-no-such-thing-as-the-perfect-child/article1470176. I don't want to spoil the reading, so let me just say a couple of words.

One of the many very astute comments Gov. Palin made in response to attacks on her son and herself is not just that it is dreadfully callous to make fun of children who are mentally challenged, it is also not-so-subtle bigotry of the first order.

Ms. Robins comes across as being as "used to" this casual cruelty as you can get. By that I mean she is wise enough not to respond in the angry way I would were Aaron my child. That does not prevent her from trying to thoughtfully educate people who are afraid of her son, who wish Aaron would not be mainstreamed in "their" schools. She considers herself an "ambassador against ignorance."

But even after five years, she can be reduced to tears when people beat around the bush, or come directly to the point when they see her son: so, why didn't you get prenatal testing? Why is this so painful?

"Because what you are really asking us is, 'Why didn't you abort your child?' And, similarly, 'Why is this child even alive right now?'"

Ms. Robins makes a series of really important points about our collective future that I encourage you to read. Suffice it to say here that you should read her essay and share it with all your friends.

That URL again is www.theglobeandmail.com/life/facts-and-arguments/theres-no-such-thing-as-the-perfect-child/article1470176.

Part Three