I don’t usually think much about eugenics – and when I do think about it, it is usually in the context of Nazi Germany. It’s not that eugenics is not important – quite the contrary. Eugenics might be one of the most important moral issues we will face in my lifetime. For those of you that are not up to date on eugenics, you will recall that eugenics is essentally a social philosophy which advocates the improvement of human hereditary traits through various forms of intervention. The best example is “selective breeding.”
The problem with eugenics is what happens in the extremes. Much of the current debate centers around eugenics-related abortions. However, there is some interesting talk about the implications of selective in-vitro fertilization (IVF). Recently I read a very interesting blog post regarding eugenics legislation in the UK. The post raises several questions:
- Is deafness at birth a defect? Certainly many in the deaf community would say absolutely not
- Is it OK to screen eggs based on avoiding a “defect” like deafness – if you beleive it is indeed a “defect”
- Is it OK to intentionally screen eggs in order to try to have a deaf child?
The last question is a really good one. Many deaf parents have expressed the view that they do not want their deaf children to have cochlear implants. They indicate that there is nothing wrong with being deaf, and that their children do not need to be “fixed” because they are not “broken.”
Well, what if that same family wanted to have a deaf child on purpose? Is that OK? I am not even sure what “OK” means in this case.
I am a hearing parent. My hearing child lost her hearing at age 3, so my choice to obtain a cochlear implant for her was clear (to me). For me, understanding an issue like this from the deaf family perspecitive is difficult. What do you think?
You can leave a comment, and I have posted this in the CochlearWorld Forums for further discussion.
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