Pro-Life Beliefs
The mission of Darke County Right to Life is to promote and defend the right to life of all innocent human beings, from the time of fertilization until natural death.
Abortion
The Ohio Department of Health’s most recent Abortion Report (2017) demonstrates that the number of abortions is still far too high, with 20,893 reported. This is nearly a 26 percent drop from 2010 (28,123 to 20,893).
Resources:
Adoption
There’s nothing wrong with adoption. There are many reasons why a parent decides adoption is the best option for a child. The pregnancy was unplanned and the mother will struggle to take care of the baby. Additionally, financial, emotional, or other circumstances make the transition into parenthood difficult.
No matter the reason, adoption is a brave, loving and life-giving decision that places a child in the care of another loving family.
Fortunately, many parents in Ohio are looking to bring new children into their homes. Some parents cannot have children of their own. Or, others are responding to the call of adoption. Whatever the reason, these adoptive parents have the potential to give children the loving home that every child deserves.
Several of the children available for adoption are considered special needs because they have physical health, mental health, emotional health, and developmental problems. Throughout Ohio, couples with the love, talents, and security to take care of these special children are waiting to adopt them.
We encourage families looking to adopt to explore their support system and seek services when issues arise throughout their adoption experience. All of Ohio’s children are in need of families that can provide a loving, stable and secure home for a growing child.
Resources
For information about adopting a child and adoption agencies/resources, call Ohio’s Help Me Grow Hotline at 1-800-755-GROW (4769).
Eugenics and Fetal Experimentation
Of all human beings, pre-born human life is most vulnerable to abuse and exploitation. Darke County Right to Life accepts legitimate medical advances that alleviate suffering and cure disease. However, those advances must never result from the intentional death and destruction of unborn human beings. The foundation for this baseline principle of medical ethics comes from the Hippocratic Oath.
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Euthanasia
Euthanasia is the purposeful killing by act or omission of a dependent human being for his/her alleged benefit. Euthanasia is advocated for certain classes of human beings, such as the handicapped young, the mentally impaired, the terminally ill and the comatose.
While masked as “compassion,” the inevitable result of supporting euthanasia is the escalation from killing for the alleged benefit of an individual to killing for the convenience of others.
Why are we against euthanasia? Primarily, euthanasia violates the principle that each human being has intrinsic dignity and value, regardless of age, physical or mental condition, or state of dependency. Euthanasia seeks to “improve” the quality of life by exterminating those who fall below an arbitrary standard. Killing is never a proper expression of compassion.
As pro-life advocates, we approve of administering pain-relieving drugs in whatever dosage necessary to alleviate the suffering of the terminally ill. Furthermore, these drugs must not be designed to hasten the death of the patient.
Lastly, we care about human life as well as the individuals and families facing difficult medical decisions. We promote positive steps of advocacy to protect all human life, no matter what stage on the continuum of life.
Resources:
- Euthanasia and Assisted Suicide: Fast Facts
- “Physician-Assisted Suicide in Oregon: A Medical Perspective,” a Michigan Law Review article from June 2008.
- Ohio Right to Life’s Assisted Suicide Literature Piece