Amy Hasbrouck’s Powerful Message to NCD Urges U.S. Disability Leadership Against the Global Threat of Assisted Suicide and Euthanasia Laws

Dear NCD members:

I have been a member of the board of Not Dead Yet in the United States since 2000.  I am also the director of Toujours Vivant-Not Dead Yet, a project of the Council of Canadians with Disabilities Ending of Life Ethics Committee to inform, unify and give voice to the disability rights opposition to assisted suicide, euthanasia and other ending-of-life practices that have a discriminatory impact on Canadians with disabilities.  I am writing separately to strongly urge NCD to issue an updated position paper opposing assisted suicide that reflects the 18 years of accumulated data on the impact of these practices on people with disabilities since the original 1995 statement.

From a perspective outside the U.S., it becomes clear that the struggle against medical killing is a global one, it is not just about assisted suicide, and that it is inextricably linked with economic and social policies that threaten the lives of disabled people everywhere.

We are currently watching efforts to institute assisted suicide and/or euthanasia (AS/E) in New Zealand, Australia, England, Scotland, France, Germany and (of course) Canada.  In 2014 we also saw the adoption of euthanasia for children in Belgium, increased suicide tourism, and the de facto enlargement of eligibility for euthanasia in Holland, Belgium and Switzerland.

In the U.S. debate, the facts of coercion and inclusion of people with disabilities are covered by the fig leaves of “assisted suicide” and “six months to live.” In Canada and elsewhere, the courts, lawmakers, the media and the public readily accept that euthanasia for those who are “suffering,” means the state will select and kill a subset of the suicidal population; those with disabilities, chronic conditions and terminal illness.

The link between AS/E and “austerity” measures is perhaps most glaring in England.  Policies of the Cameron government to remove disability benefits, destroy the Independent Living program, and limit access to live-in care-givers have wreaked havoc for five years.  These policies go hand-in-hand with the current bill in the House of Lords to allow assisted suicide.  Politicians and the media refer to people with disabilities as scroungers and layabouts, prompting an increase in hate crimes.  “Austerity” is having similar economic and social effects elsewhere, forcing institutionalization, prompting suicides, and creating the conditions for abuse

Disabled advocates around the world look to the U.S. disability rights movement for leadership and policy guidance.  The NCD position paper has served as a benchmark and model already.  An updated statement that presents current evidence of failure of safeguards, abuse, and the enlargement of eligibility criteria would be indispensable to advocates working to stem the tide of AS/E.

Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions.  Thank you very much for your consideration.  Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions.