Pro-Lifers Urge Officials to Stop Disabled Woman's Court-Ordered Killing
by Rusty Pugh and Jenni Parker
February 24, 2005
(AgapePress) - As a two-day reprieve prompts supporters of Terri Schiavo to spur their efforts on her behalf, one pro-lifer is saying it is ludicrous to assume the disabled woman has no chance for recovery and should be starved to death. Nevertheless, her life hangs in the balance while the legal battle to save her continues.Family, friends, and supporters of the long-time nursing home patient are welcoming the temporary reprieve she was given by Florida Circuit Judge George Greer on Wednesday. The two-day stay he issued prevents the removal of her feeding tube for the moment. As a result of that order, doctors are not allowed, at least for the next 48 hours, to cut off the helpless woman's food and fluid supply and thereby cause her to die slowly of dehydration.
However, as Focus on the Family chairman James Dobson observes, "The decision is not overly comforting," since this judge has "consistently proven himself to be no friend of Terri Schiavo." But those who are Terri's friends are making the most of the stay and doing their utmost to point out the cruelty, injustice, and senselessness of killing her.
Janet Folger is president of the group Faith2Action and is personally acquainted with Terri and her parents, Robert and Mary Schindler. She says Michael Schiavo's claim that his wife is in a hopeless vegetative state is ridiculous and is only an excuse for him to be allowed to legally kill her. And as for the alleged hopelessness of Terri's present state, Folger asserts, nothing could be farther from the truth.
The Facts about Terri's Medical Condition
The National Resource Center for Traumatic Brain Injury defines a vegetative state as a condition that falls between a coma, in which there is no arousal or awareness, and consciousness, which is characterized by both arousal and awareness. According to the Center website, a patient who has survived a severe brain injury generally passes through stages of emergence, transitioning from coma; then entering a vegetative state for a time; and finally -- in many cases -- progressing to some level of consciousness.
Whether or not the term "vegetative" actually applies to Terri Schiavo's current condition, health professionals could certainly argue with the characterization of her prognosis as hopeless. The NRC for TBI site, which is hosted by a division of the Virginia Commonwealth University Medical Center, notes that brain-injured patients with good or even reasonably good outcomes tend to make transitions through a vegetative state that lasts for some period of time. "Certainly," the online resource states, "there are those patients who remain in a vegetative state and never emerge from the state, although these numbers are extremely small, e.g., probably less than 3 percent."
But family members and others who have spent time with Terri maintain that she exhibits signs of arousal and awareness. Faith2Action's Folger says Barbara Weller, one of the attorneys representing Terri, has had occasion to visit and spend time with her and reports that interaction with the brain-injured woman was nothing like what she anticipated. The pro-life advocate says the lawyer "expected to see a woman on her bed, barely able to recognize, communicate, and function," but what Weller found instead was "a woman sitting in a chair, responding, trying to communicate."
Janet Folger | |
Troubling Questions
There are many things the public does not know about Terri Schiavo's medical condition, including its underlying causes, Folger contends. She says there are a number of unanswered questions. For instance, she muses, "This woman, who is clearly able to respond and can follow you around the room, who can laugh and can make noises -- why can't she speak? Well, it might have something to do with the fact that she's been denied rehabilitation for all of these years. But not only has she been denied rehabilitative care, she has also been denied the ability that [for] most disabled people would be a given."Also, Folger says several questions remain about how Terri Schiavo became disabled in the first place. The Faith2Action spokeswoman points out that medical records show the disabled woman suffered fractures consistent with attempted strangulation. These questions must be answered, the pro-lifer insists, especially when there are facts that point to foul play and that could possibly implicate Michael Schiavo -- the man who apparently most wants Terri dead.
Those who want Terri allowed to live are prayerful that the two-day stay, which offered her a brief reprieve and her parents scant time for last-ditch efforts to defend her rights, will be enough. Meanwhile, pro-life groups are calling on all of their lines of support to come to the Florida woman's aid.
Pro-Life Advocacy, Prayer, and Petition
Joe Starrs, director of American Life League's Crusade for the Defense of Our Catholic Church, is imploring Catholic bishops to take a stand in the matter. He says the battle to save Schiavo is growing more critical by the moment; therefore, he begs the church leaders, and Bishop Robert Lynch of St. Petersburg in particular, to "take up Terri's fight in both prayer and action and to uphold Church teaching regarding the dignity of human life." Starrs says the lack of clear, decisive action by Lynch and far too many of his brother bishops in Florida and across the U.S. has been "more than disappointing."
Other Christian leaders have been more vocal on Terri's behalf. On Wednesday, when Judge Greer's stay was announced, pro-family spokesman Dr. James Dobson issued a statement to his constituency that noted, "Today a crisis has been averted, but only for 48 hours." He went on to commend Florida's Governor Jeb Bush for his promise to defend Terri's life and added, "We pray that he, and those who stand with him, will be successful."
The Center for Reclaiming America has also been actively advocating for the disabled woman. As the 48-hour stay ticks away, more than 5,000 people an hour are signing the online "Petition to Save Terri Schiavo," which the Center is sponsoring. That petition urges Governor Bush to "take immediate action" to stop Terri's forced starvation, a death which Center founder Dr. D. James Kennedy describes as "an extremely cruel and painful ordeal."
The online petition also calls for legislative, judicial, and executive efforts that will finally prevent the court-ordered removal of Terri's feeding tube from taking place. "This is one of the strongest responses we have seen for an online petition," says Dr. Gary Cass, the Center's executive director. "The life of an otherwise healthy 41-year-old woman is in jeopardy today, and thousands of concerned Americans are pleading for action."
Cass will personally deliver the names on the petition to Governor Bush and Florida legislators in Tallahassee on Friday. Meanwhile, he is urging more people to go to the Center for Reclaiming America website to access the "Save Terri" petition, and also to call or e-mail Florida's governor and other officials on Terri Schiavo's behalf.
