Tag Archives: Down Syndrome

Blasphemy Case Finally Dismissed

July 15, 2013 Bartle Doo Leave a comment

By Joseph DeCaro, Worthy News Correspondent

ISLAMABAD, PAKISTAN (Worthy News)– The Supreme Court of Pakistan dismissed an appeal against the decision of the Islamabad High Court to revoke the First Information Report formerly lodged against Rimsha Masih under Section 295 B and C of the Pakistani Penal Code, finally putting a legal end to her controversial blasphemy case.

During the hearing, Justices Tasaduq Hussain Gillani and Nasir ul Malik dismissed the application filed by Malik Ammad to reopen the blasphemy case against Masih.

Abdul Hameed Rana, Masih's counsel, said now that the High Court has declared that Masih — a 14-year-old Christian girl who suffers from Down Syndrome — is innocent, there's no longer a case pending against her.

Masih was first arrested in the Mehrabad colony of Islamabad after Ammad had lodged a complaint with the Ramna police accusing her of burning pages of the Quran. When word of this got out, Muslim mobs attacked her home and other Christian homes in Meherabad, so the Masih family was secretly moved to an undisclosed location in Pakistan.

Masih and her family were apparently granted asylum in Canada after local Canadian news recently spotted them and then broke the story.

Source: Worthy News

News, Politics, Government

Hundreds answer church's Facebook plea to adopt baby with Down Syndrome

July 13, 2013 Bartle Doo Leave a comment

A Virginia church says it has been flooded with calls from people around the world willing to adopt an unborn baby with Down Syndrome that otherwise would have been aborted.

Rev. Thomas Vander Woude of Holy Trinity Catholic Church in Gainesville decided to intervene to help save the unborn child after learning that the mother planned to abort the baby if an adoption offer didn’t come through, WUSA9.com reported.

The unidentified mother, who lives in a state where late-term abortion is illegal, gave the adoption agency 24 hours to find a suitable parent, according to the report.

Vander Woulde, with the help of a parishioner, posted an urgent plea on the church’s Facebook page Monday.

“There is a couple in another state who have contacted an adoption agency looking for a family to adopt their [Down] Syndrome unborn baby. If a couple has not been found by today they plan to abort the baby,” the post read. “If you are interested in adopting this baby please contact Fr. VW IMMEDIATELY. [We] are asking all to pray for this baby and the wisdom that this couple realize the importance of human life and do not abort this beautiful gift from God.”

The church received more than a 1,000 phone calls and emails from families around the world wanting to adopt the baby, WUSA9.com reported.

With the help of the church the adoption agency handling the mother’s case was able to narrow the field to three families.

“It’s a great testament to the goodness of humanity,” Vander Woulde told the station. “This unborn baby, even though it will have some struggles, has a purpose”

Click here for more from WUSA9.com.

Source: FULL ARTICLE at Fox US News

Articles of Interest

North Dakota Senate Passes Two Unprecedented Abortion Bans

March 15, 2013 Bartle Doo Leave a comment

By The Huffington Post News Editors

The North Dakota State Senate passed two anti-abortion bills on Friday that would be the first laws of their kind in the United States and would ban most abortions in the state. One bill would prevent women from having abortions as soon as the fetal heartbeat can be detected, as early as six weeks into the pregnancy, and the other bans abortions in cases of fetal abnormalities such as Down Syndrome.

House Bill 1456, the heartbeat ban, passed the North Dakota House of Representatives earlier this year and now heads to Gov. Jack Dalrymple’s (R) desk to be signed. The law would subject doctors to a $5,000 fine and up to five years in prison if they perform an abortion after the fetal heartbeat can be detected, surpassing Arkansas’ new 12-week abortion ban to become the strictest abortion law in the country. The Republican-controlled Senate voted to pass it on Friday without any discussion.

The Senate also passed House Bill 1305, which bans abortions that are performed based on gender selection or a genetic defect. Three other states — Pennsylvania, Oklahoma and Arizona — have laws banning abortions based on gender selection, but North Dakota would be the first state to prevent a woman from aborting a fetus diagnosed with Down Syndrome or other fetal anomalies.

Jennifer Lawrence’s Amazing Childhood Friendship With Andy Strunk, 23-Year-Old With Down Syndrome (VIDEO)

February 26, 2013 Bartle Doo Leave a comment

By The Huffington Post News Editors

Add a longtime friendship with Andy Strunk, who has Down Syndrome, to the list of reasons to love Jennifer Lawrence.

On Sunday night, Lawrence took the award for Best Actress for her role in Silver Linings Playbook, and as usual, charmed viewers through the night. HuffPost declared her the winner of the entire event.

Strunk, who is 23, has been friends with her since they were students at Kammerer Middle School.

Family seeks answers in Down Syndrome son's death

February 19, 2013 Bartle Doo Leave a comment

A lawyer for the family of a man with Down Syndrome who died while being escorted from a movie theater says the grieving family is seeking answers after the death, which was ruled a homicide.

Twenty-six-year-old Robert Ethan Saylor died Jan. 12 after security guards tried to remove him from a Maryland theater where he had finished watching a movie and was refusing to leave. Joseph Espo, an attorney representing the family, said Tuesday the family is still in shock.

The Sheriff’s Office previously said Saylor resisted arrest and was handcuffed as he was led out. Saylor then began having what officials described as a medical emergency. He was taken to a hospital, where he died.

Officials said Friday the state medical examiner’s office had ruled the death a homicide.

Articles of Interest

Krugman, Death Panels, And The Disabled

February 17, 2013 Bartle Doo Leave a comment

By Anthony ‘AC’ Castellitto

Paul Krugman SC Krugman, Death Panels, and the Disabled

“We’re going to need more revenue…it will require some sort of middle class taxes as well…And we’re also going to…have to make decisions about health care, not pay for health care that has no demonstrated medical benefits…death panels and sales taxes is how we do this.” –Paul Krugman

I earned my Bachelor’s Degree in Counseling and Human Services and have spent my professional career assisting individuals with various mental, emotional, and developmental challenges. As a father of an autistic child, I also have a personal interest in the long-term needs of the disabled community. I realize my son will require life-long support in some form or another, and I’m grateful we live in a country that seeks to provide necessary support services to the most vulnerable among us. However, I am of the strong opinion that the political actions spearheaded by the present administration will ultimately have highly detrimental effects on the current, as well as future, special needs communities.

Universal healthcare, in particular, will likely drive down the payments for skilled therapists and leave our disabled loved ones with few high-quality options in terms of treatment and recovery. The most needy will have more competition for state and federal dollars, a natural consequence of the expansion of recipients related to widespread increases in government dependency. Under a worse case scenario, universal health care could quite possibly deem the most vulnerable, in particular the elderly and disabled, most expendable as their care needs increase and federal funds decrease.

The fact that a high percentage of babies born with Down Syndrome are aborted is tragic in itself; we must be proactive in preventing future atrocities based on the monetary-based decisions of an elite, ‘enlightened’ minority. If we fail to speak out, Paul Krugman and his death panels will have the final say.

Photo Credit: Center for American Progress (Creative Commons)

News, Politics, Government

School workers on leave after girl with Down Syndrome has shoes duct-taped to feet

February 7, 2013 Bartle Doo Leave a comment

An Indianapolis school district has placed on leave employees involved in an incident in which the shoes of a girl with Down syndrome were duct-taped to her socks.

Wayne Township Schools spokeswoman Mary Lang says the district is “appalled” by the incident Monday at Westlake Elementary School in which 8-year-old Shaylyn Searcy was sent home with the duct-taped shoes.

The district hasn’t identified the employees or the number involved.

It released a statement Wednesday saying an investigation involving police and the Indiana Department of Child Services is continuing. It also says all of its special education employees will review the district’s policy on seclusion and restraint of students.

The district says Shaylyn’s parents have accepted her transfer to another school in the district.

News, Politics, Government

What's So Different About Disability?

February 6, 2013 Bartle Doo Leave a comment

By Judy Owen, Contributor I was watching my children play at the park with a group today. Weather is beautiful in Florida about this time of the year. There is a group of boys at the playground that my two seem to play with regularly now. My son asked me at one point today if the boys went to high school. I guess he thought this because the boys aren’t at his school. I chuckled and said they just go to a different school. Then, looking at the lot of them, I figured my son is probably about the same age as the others, but these boys towered over him. It could be my genes (most 10 year olds are bigger than me) or it could be the Down Syndrome. I’ll chalk it up to him being stuck with me for a mom. As I watched, aside from the height differences, he is pretty much like the other kids and they seem to accept him as such. …read more
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Forbes Latest

Bartle Doo Article Archives

Tag Archives: Down Syndrome

Blasphemy Case Finally Dismissed

Hundreds answer church's Facebook plea to adopt baby with Down Syndrome

North Dakota Senate Passes Two Unprecedented Abortion Bans

Jennifer Lawrence’s Amazing Childhood Friendship With Andy Strunk, 23-Year-Old With Down Syndrome (VIDEO)

Family seeks answers in Down Syndrome son's death

Krugman, Death Panels, And The Disabled

School workers on leave after girl with Down Syndrome has shoes duct-taped to feet

What's So Different About Disability?

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