Inclusion Daily Express -- Diverse Opinions Surround Terri Schiavo's Death

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Diverse Opinions Surround Terri Schiavo's Death
By Dave Reynolds, Inclusion Daily Express
April 14, 2005

PINELLAS PARK, FLORIDA--Its' been two weeks since Terri Schiavo died.

Aside from the debate over which political party or religious groups 'won' and which 'lost', most of the media focus has been on dozens of initiatives around the country that have been launched regarding "living wills", "advanced directives", "do not resuscitate orders", and so forth.

It would appear that Terri's legacy will primarily be that of reinforcing in the public consciousness that it is important to have your 'end of life' wishes communicated to the right people, just in case you end up like Terri -- with your life at the mercy of others.

Many disability rights advocates had hoped that Terri's life would be spared, but that if she died her legacy would be that of making the public conscious of the fact that thousands of people identify with Terri, in that judgments regarding their 'quality of life' are routinely made by other people, and that those judgments at times aren't aligned with their own wishes.

The issues surrounding Terri's death, the legal battles that raged to the end, the advocacy groups on both sides of the issue are very complicated and exist on so many levels.

In the past two weeks, I have found dozens of articles that link Terri's name with such subjects as gun control and air pollution, but that do not even mention her death in terms of disability.

I have included just 15 articles and opinion pieces I found from or about disability rights advocates who passionately defend their positions on today's "Below the Fold" page.

In related news, WorldNetDaily has issued a correction to an April 2 story in which it had reported that CBS TV was rushing to produce a movie about Terri Schiavo for the May rating sweeps. The story apparently had been based on an Internet hoax -- as an April Fool's Day joke.

Related articles and opinion pieces on Terri Schiavo:
"Terri Schiavo's Right To Live" (Inclusion Daily Express Archives)

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