By JOHN PAUL LAVALLEE
(Editor’s Note: John Paul Lavallee, a student at Our Lady of Lourdes, Bethesda, Md., wrote this pro-life essay that has won local and national awards. Wanderer columnist Fr. Kevin M. Cusick met this young man at a recent Maryland Right to Life banquet. Fr. Cusick points out that John Paul, who has autism, dictated his essay because he cannot read or write. Someone read the essay out loud for him at the banquet.
(The Lavallee family granted The Wanderer permission to reprint John Paul’s essay. All rights reserved.)
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I have many friends with autism, Down syndrome, and other disabilities. Some of them would have been aborted if their parents did not respect their lives. If this happened, there would be fewer people on the planet. Many people say this is good, because large populations are too hard on the Earth’s resources, but I believe that the Earth can sustain every person God creates. People with autism would not get a chance to write a book about their experience, or be a genius, or be a good friend if they were aborted.
Many people with Down syndrome, 9 out of 10, are aborted every year because of a genetic test that can predict this condition before birth. This is sad and evil because these babies cannot defend themselves. All of us are being deprived of a chance to love and serve most children with Down syndrome, and to receive the love and kindness they grow up to give.
This is a big problem because we live in a rich, powerful, and smart society, but this society is not generous or welcoming to any kind of life that seems weak, but is actually just different. I do not think this is smart at all. In fact, this injustice makes me angry at the people who encourage it. It shows that some people think they know better than God who are the perfect people to create.
I worry that something like this persecution could happen to people with autism if a similar genetic test is developed to predict autism. As a 14-year-old boy with autism, I know from personal experience that there are many things I can do without help.
I love the world, and especially people. I love learning about the world, and spending time with my friends at Our Lady of Lourdes School. At my school, I am accepted along with everybody else. Some of us have disabilities, and some do not. None of us pretend we are perfect. I am glad to have a voice to say what I think about respecting every life. I know my voice is needed just as much as the voices of all my friends.
I like learning about new discoveries that scientists are making about autism. I hope these discoveries will help me, and many other people, some day. But, if these discoveries are used to kill us before birth instead of helping us grow up to share our special gifts, then I will be very sad. I will wonder what is good about science after all.
It is important to talk about this problem now because we want to help people with Down syndrome to be loved and given life, just as much as we want this for people with every disability and for people with no disabilities. To respect life means knowing that God creates life, and remembering that everyone God creates is very good. Respecting life is another way to love God. Who can live without that?
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