The Singer Song
This protest song was written for a group of parents who were protesting against the bioethicist Peter Singer at Princeton University. In brief , Peter Singer combines and enthusiasm for vegetariansim and the rights of apes , with a belief that child under one month is a non-person and that the killing of such children , if they are disabled can be justified for utilitarian and pragmatic reasons
Singer Protest Song
1. We are marching to oppose infanticide
We are marching to express our love and pride
In our children who are labelled
Both defective and disabled
But they're lovely and this man must be defied.
2. We are challenging a man who says a beast
Has a quality of life that is at least
far more valid and worthwhile
Than a new-born human child
Who he thinks should be dispatched if she's diseased
3. We are asking for this man to be removed
And that Princeton states his views are not approved
They've no scientific base
And he states an unsound case
Which can eas'ly be refuted and disproved
4. We are crying for the children who are lost,
Those that Singer thinks bring much too high a cost
It is cheaper to dispense
With the weak who'll cause expense
"They're not useful" is the pragmatist's riposte.
5. We are fighting for a deeply felt belief
That a human child is worth much more than beef
That they have the right to thrive,
To be loved and to survive
And the loss of ANY child would bring great grief.
6.We are striving to combat a shabby creed,
We are confident , united and agreed,
For we know that we are right
And we're strong and we will fight
And we're positive and know that we'll succeed.
Catherine Slater July 2000
An open letter to Princeton about Singer?A History of Disability - From Invisibility to Inclusion?
Link to a very good report about the two trials and their implications for disabled people.|My familys home page A poem about community care A poem about annoying professionals my disability page
