I have seen torture. And I am overjoyed that laws enabling that torture were just eliminated in Canada.
With the Supreme Court having recently struck down laws against assisted suicide, the controversial topic of euthanasia has risen to the surface of public debate once more. Arguments against the legalization of doctor-assisted suicide often come from a place of care, but are misguided at best.
As an individual who has cared for others with chronic conditions who suffer every day without relief, despite what medical treatment is available, I have witnessed what could only be described as torture. When there is no cure, no means to effectively control a person’s suffering, and most importantly, when an individual has made it clear that they do not want to live out the rest of their lives in these conditions, to deny someone in this situation the right to die is without a doubt unethical.
There is the argument that legalizing assisted suicide somehow devalues the lives of those who live with conditions that involve chronic pain, issues with mobility, and degenerative illnesses of all kinds. Those who access assisted suicide do so because they have made that choice. This should be seen as an individual’s choice: the decision to die in these circumstances does not and should not speak to others who face similar circumstances, or to people living with disabilities as a whole.
Honouring an individual’s right to die when the only realistic alternative is suffering is humane, and should be seen as a way of supplementing palliative care. Legalization of euthanasia will not take away from the quality of medical care; it will strengthen it.
For me, at the end of the day, it boils down to this: we allow our pets to die with dignity, and there is no need for a lengthy debate. We recognize that a suffering animal, even with the best medical treatment, can be left suffering needlessly. Yet, there are individuals in our communities with excruciatingly painful chronic conditions who have the expressed desire to not live their lives in agony, and their right to die with dignity is, somehow, still up for debate.
The recent ruling of the Supreme Court is a step in the right direction. It’s also a step towards creating a legal framework that honours choice in an area that we have failed for too long.