“We don’t see people like that anymore”
(Originally written for my column in the local newspaper)
A couple of times over the summer I heard people commenting on the number of people they saw in Ireland with either Downs Syndrome or some form of birth abnormality. When I asked what they meant, they would invariably answer something like “We just don’t see people like that in our country anymore.” Sometimes this was said as if a puzzling fact they hadn’t quite figured out, other times with quiet pathos, because they had figured it out.
I was also at some events over the summer where the magnificent achievements of some athletes with Downs Syndrome were recognised and celebrated. These were memorable events—ones that brought communities of diverse people together, that sparked great joy and camaraderie even on a grey, wet and otherwise miserable evening. Enriching for all who were there.
Recently too, I heard an interview on a local radio station with a local man who had choreographed silver medal-winning dances at the Special Olympics. He spoke movingly about a relation with Downs Syndrome and his empathy towards people who learn differently. He said a couple of things which struck me. One was that everyone should go to the Special Olympics—that it would do them good; and the second was that “everybody still talks about the year Ireland hosted the Special Olympics as being the best of all time.”
Maybe that is the case because in Ireland we still have a quite a number of people with Downs Syndrome and other birth conditions—and they are very much part and parcel of our society. The dark reality is that in other countries many of these wonderful people do not get a chance to live, but have their lives ended before they are born. This only makes us all the poorer as societies.
As I watched the rich outpouring of celebration, support, affection and people uniting around those with a range of needs, I thought it was a great thing to behold. In Donegal we know that people with different needs and abilities are at the heart of aspects of community life—much beloved, always putting a smile on people’s faces. This is how society should be.
Sadly, one of the consequences of Ireland’s recent embrace of abortion is the demise of the births of such wonderful individuals. Our quest for ‘freedom’ has narrowed us. A search for the ‘perfect’ has robbed us of the perfecting power of what we call ‘imperfections’—and who are we to say that we aren’t the imperfect ones? We are all disabled in varying degrees and need the support of each other.
I came across John Donne’s poem ‘No Man is an Island’ the other day. It speaks of the interconnectedness of community, and has these powerful lines
“If a clod be washed away by the sea,
Europe is the less,
As well as if a promontory were…
Any man's death diminishes me,
Because I am involved in mankind.
And therefore never send to know for whom the bell tolls;
It tolls for thee.”
The loss of one leaves us all the poorer. And the absence of those born differently, is the bell tolling for thee.
Every human being is of infinite worth, created in God’s image, and someone for whom Christ would go to the Cross—it is still not too late to reverse the trend, and to ensure the rich texture of Irish (and any other) society remains.
