The Modern Pursuit of Human Perfection:
Defining Who is Worthy of Life
University of Alberta
October 23, 2008
This public dialogue was cosponsored by the Alberta Association for Community Living and formed part of the national series A Matter of Diversity as part of the 50th anniversary of the Canadian Association for Community Living. It was organized around the stories of three people with experience of parenting and disability: Wendy Macdonald, Sam Sansalone, and Colleen Campbell—and framed by opening comments from Bruce Uditsky and Dick Sobsey, and closing reflections from Simo Vehmas. Interactions with the audience were also recorded, and many of these concentrated on raising questions linking past and ongoing practices around themes of eugenics, disability, social policy, and individual decision. Videos for these are closed captioned, and transcripts are also available.
Controversy over mercy killings, euthanasia, and selective non-treatment of those with disabilities continue in Canada today, as manifest in the current debate over Bill C-384 on euthanasia and assisted suicide. For those living with, or close to, disabilities, the issues here are not academic. Is genetic information neutral? Who should decide what constitutes valued human life? What values should govern bio-ethics and medical ethics? What does it mean to imagine a world without people with disabilities? How does the modern approach to bio-ethics and medical ethics differ from past eugenic practices?
Transcripts for the talks (Coming Soon)