A New Modest Proposal

Has everyone heard about 9 year old Ashley, whose parents call her their Pillow Angel? Since Ashley was born with a rare condition resulting in profound mental retardation, her parents thought it would be nice if Ashley could always remain small. If she never grew up, they could continue to carry her around. She would be more mobile for family trips. Since she would never surpass the mental development of a baby, why not give her hormones that would stunt her growth? They began this treatment when she was six years old.

While they were at it, the parents thought it would be smart to remove her uterus, thus eliminating the nuisance of menstruation. And, since she didn’t need her breasts for anything, and they would only get in the way of her harness, they had her breast buds removed also. Voila! Ashley is now a desexualized mini-person, kind of a cuddly toy for her devoted (but practical!) parents.

Some people are really mad about this. Disabled people and their advocates are especially upset.

But wait! Wouldn’t it be nice if we could all keep our babies small and cute, and keep them on pillows like little lapdogs? Growing kids are so annoying! Before you know it, they’re too big to carry and then it’s hard to take them along on family trips. Sometimes they don’t even want to cuddle! Sometimes as parents, we wonder why the hell we had kids in the first place, if they’re going to get all big and go through puberty and then refuse to cuddle.

The Ashley Treatment, as it has been named to honor the recipient of these procedures, is an option whose time has come. Parents deserve the right to modify their children for the sake of convenience, and if the kids don’t even know what “inalienable rights” are, then how can you be violating them?

Ashley’s parents have a website here, and the Disability Rights and Education Fund state their position here. And you can read Jonathan Swift’s “A Modest Proposal” here.