Last night (April 23), three disability experts/activists/advocates addressed an audience of several hundred people at Washington State University (from the April 23 WSU Release):
PULLMAN, Wash.—A panel of disability experts will discuss the issues around legalizing euthanasia during “Euthanasia: A Disability Perspective” 7-9 p.m. April 23 in Todd 116 in the Washington State University campus.
Duane French, director of the Division of Employment and Assistance Program with the Washington State Department of Social and Health Services; Cyndi Jones, publisher and editor of Mainstream Magazine; and Marilyn Golden, policy analyst at the Disability Rights Education and Defense Fund (DREF); with moderator Dan Holbrook, WSU associate professor of philosophy, will discuss the I-1000 initiative that aims to legalize physician-assisted suicide in the state of Washington.
French, the founder and president of “Not Dead Yet,” has served on the Federal Interagency Coordinating council as an appointee of the Clinton administration. Jones is the director of the center for an Accessible Society and its program “What’s Next?,” a mentoring program for high school students with disabilities. Golden is co-author of “The ADA, an Implementation Guide” and coordinates the Disabled International Support Effort. (editor’s note: Duane French is the founder and president of the Washington State chapter of Not Dead Yet – Diane Coleman is the founder and president of the national organization.)
According to a press account today, they turned at least one person’s attitudes around:
Chris Wesen was a proponent for physician-assisted suicide.
The 19-year-old Washington State University student believed terminally ill people should have a say about when and how they die.
His stance on the matter changed after he attended a discussion on the subject by a panel of disability experts Wednesday at Washington State University. “They brought up a lot of good points,” he said. “I don’t think it’s the only option.”
Wesen was one of several hundred people who attended “Euthanasia: A Disability Perspective” sponsored by the WSU Disability Awareness Association. The three panelists — all of whom are disabled — challenged the ideas behind physician-assisted suicide, and more specifically, an initiative aimed to make the practice legal in the state of Washington.
I look forward to hearing more on this event – from other media accounts or from the panelists who predictably made a compelling case for the disability rights-based opposition to legalized euthanasia and assisted suicide. I expect to post some updates on this event and of the efforts of disability activists in Washington State over the next few weeks. –Stephen Drake