Copy and pasted from an email I just received: (also posted in General Discussion)
Hello everyone,
Here is an important message from the CDSS Advocacy Committee. Chatelaine has printed information in their September issue about prenatal testing. Please respond to show them there is another side to this issue! Letters can come from your group, from yourselves personally, so please broadcast this email to your local members.
Here is the link to the article "Chatelaine's Health Heroes: Helping Women Live Longer and Healthier" which includes a segment of prenatal testing. This is a news release; the story is in the September issue as well.
http://www.cnw.ca/fr/releases/archive/July2004/30/c7418.html
Here is the link to a longer article on pregnancy. Scroll down to the Questions, "What if tests show my baby isn't healthy?" implying babies with Down syndrome are unhealthy.
http://www.chatelaine.com/health/article.jsp?content=20040706_091959_3955
Chatelaine says that "health coverage is the number one reason readers choose Chatelaine over other magazines". Yet we find their information related to Down syndrome misleading. More than 40,000 subscribers, plus those who read the magazine in physician waiting room across the country are receiving this information, without a balancing view of the realities of the lives of individuals with Down syndrome in Canada today. We think it is time for that balance!
Our advocacy training materials tell us that letters should be:
- Creative, compelling and concise (100 - 300 words)
- Include an opening statement about the topic
- Provide a human focus. Let them know how this information affects your family.
Tell them what action you want them to take - in this case, publish a story about families with a child with Down syndrome. Include a suggested timeline - perhaps 60 days.
Consider sending a photograph of your family with your letter including permission to publish it - but don't expect it returned! Include your contact information for any follow-up.
Contact Information:
Chatelaine Editorial
8th Floor- One Mount Pleasant Road
Toronto, ON
Canada M4Y 2Y5
Telephone: (416) 764-2880
e-mail: letters@chatelaine.com
Send your letter to Rona Maynard, the Chatelaine's editor, and Lisa Murphy, Assistant Managing Editor, Health.
Attached is a copy of the letter the CDSS Advocacy Committee forwarded to Chatelaine, for your information. To help us track our effectiveness, we would appreciate you forwarding a copy of your letters to us. Let's work together and make a difference!
Here's the copy of the letter written by the CDSS regarding this matter:
CANADIAN DOWN SYNDROME SOCIETY
SOCIETE CANADIENE DU SYNDROME DE DOWN
811-14 Street N.W.
Calgary, Alberta T2N 2A4
Phone: (403) 270-8500
Email: dsinfo@cdss.ca
Fax: (403) 270-8291
Website: www.cdss.ca
August 25, 2004
Ms Rona Maynard
Editor
Chatelaine Editorial
8th Floor – One Mount Pleasant Place
Toronto, ON M4Y 2Y5
Dear Ms Maynard:
It is extremely disturbing that two separate articles in the September issue of Chatelaine make such negative and inaccurate comments about having a child with Down syndrome. The article celebrating the Top 10 Medical Advances for Women comments specifically that Down syndrome is an unwanted pregnancy, and that Down syndrome inherently means that something is wrong with the baby. Additionally, the article goes on to state that the early screening tests can determine who “needs” amniocentesis. What gives you or medical science the authority to say that someone would need an amnio because their child might have Down syndrome? I shudder to think what is implied by useful results.
If that isn’t enough, fear number four 4 in your Stay-Calm Pregnancy Guide is “What if my baby isn’t healthy?” Again, this section jumps directly into implying to readers that a prenatal indication of Down syndrome will guarantee them an unhealthy child. Down syndrome is not a medical condition. It does not require medical treatment. In fact there are thousands of children who have Down syndrome that experience no more medical problems than any other child, so the insinuation that a baby with Down syndrome isn’t healthy is patently wrong!
Articles like these, while based in some fact, serve as commentary that having a child with Down syndrome would be extremely undesirable; yet there is no rationale provided for that assertion. There are thousands of families in this country who could serve up a compelling case for giving birth, loving and raising a child with Down syndrome as opposed to aborting them upon their prenatal discovery. I would strongly recommend that it is time for that article to appear in this magazine.
Sincerely,
William Seymour
Board Chair
Elizabeth Dolman
Executive Director
cc. Lisa Murphy, Ass’t Managing Editor, Health
CDSS IS A Registered Charitable Organization – Canada Customs and Revenue Agency Business Number 11883 0751 RR 001
