NO. 48

Indicates Matter Stricken
Indicates New Matter

The Senate assembled at 11:00 A.M., the hour to which it stood adjourned, and was called to order by the ACTING PRESIDENT, Senator SCOTT.

The following remarks by Senator CASH were ordered printed in the Journal of March 21, 2019:

March 21st is World Down Syndrome Day. Y'all probably received this flier yesterday and these little ribbons that signify our love and support for those with Down syndrome. Most of us have known someone with Down syndrome. I remember a young man in my church years back -- a happy lovable young man.

There is a survey that has been done that shows 99 percent of people with Down syndrome surveyed are happy with their lives. 97 percent like who they are. 86 percent of people with Down syndrome say they make friends easily. By contrast, a survey shows only 81 percent of those without Down syndrome said they are happy with their lives. Many of you remember the 2018 Gerber Baby of the Year was a 1 year old boy with Down syndrome from Darlton, Georgia. There has been a lot of awareness of the value of someone with Down syndrome. I think we can all speak to that based on our own life experience.

There is another part of this discussion about babies with Down syndrome that I find disturbing. In the United States, surveys show that 67 to 85 percent of babies detected to have Down syndrome in the womb are killed before birth. In the United Kingdom, that percentage reaches to 90 percent. In Denmark, 98 percent of the babies in the womb detected with Down syndrome are aborted. In Iceland, 100 percent of the babies detected in the womb to have Down syndrome are then killed. So on the one hand, we recognize people with Down syndrome are loving and worthy of being loved. Their value is intrinsic to being a human being. It is based on the Judeo Christian belief that all people are created in the image of God. This belief is the very foundation of our belief in human dignity and equality. That's on the one hand. On the other hand, people with Down syndrome have no protection in the womb. There is no law that prevents killing an unborn child with Down syndrome solely because they have Down syndrome. I hope that it seems wrong to you, that a child with special needs, a vulnerable child can be eliminated for just that very reason. Now, I could introduce a Bill that would prevent unborn babies with Down syndrome from being killed in the womb. For that matter, I could introduce a Bill that would make it against the law to abort people based on their gender. You know, sometimes someone might want a boy, when they find out they are having a girl they might decide to abort that child. I could introduce that such law. I could introduce any number of laws that would make it wrong and a crime to abort -- kill people in the womb for specific reasons that we don't think they should be killed. I want you to know I have introduced a law that would prevent all these things. It is called "Personhood." It basically says when human life begins at conception, when that unique cell with your unique DNA is formed that that human being is made in the image of God and has the right to life from that point forward. Whether at the end of the first trimester that human being might be detected to have Down syndrome or might be detected to be the wrong gender or might be detected to simply be inconvenient, it is wrong. It is a crime and it is an offense against a Holy God to kill that child in the womb. I believe that someday as a State, and pray to God as a nation, we are going to come to our senses and we are going to realize that killing babies in the womb is, has been and always will be a bad idea. Rejecting the greatest gift of all from our Creator God is a bad idea. I look forward to the day in South Carolina when we no longer do that. Thank you.

At 11:04 A.M., on motion of Senator SHEALY, the Senate adjourned to meet next Tuesday, April 2, 2019, at 2:00 P.M.

This web page was last updated on Friday, March 29, 2019 at 11:49 A.M.