Now that George Bush has
vetoed a bill
rejecting legislation passed by Congress that would have expanded
federal research on embryonic stem cells, Americans have been given a
taste of what Canadians have had to deal with for the past four years.
Actually, that’s not entirely fair to our American friends. The situation here in Canada is actually far worse.
Surprised? Well, don’t be. Back in 2002 the Liberal government passed
Bill C-6 – the so-called
Assisted Human Reproduction Act. Where Bush has limited federal funding, the Liberals have
banned research into human embryonic stem cells
altogether. As is the situation in the United States, religious
injunctions against meddling with embryos are dominating Canadian
legislatures.
And this is exactly the issue at hand. It’s
actually not such a big deal that embryonic stem cell research has been
curtailed. There have been remarkable advancements in deriving stem
cells from adults and non-human animals. The pending stem cell
revolution is in no danger of being interrupted.
Rather, the
real problems raised by Bill C-6 and Bush’s recent veto have to do with
deplorable politicking and the incessant intrusion of religion onto
daily life. When announcing the veto, Bush unabashedly surrounded
himself with babies – babies born as a result of embryo adoption
programs. Bush’s implied statement of embryo sanctification flies in
the face of the fact that thousands upon thousands of embryos are
destroyed each year, most arising from IVF efforts.
I’m sure Bush isn’t about to tread on that old issue. What used to be called “test tube babies” now accounts for over
112,000 births each year in the United States alone. Worldwide, it’s been estimated that over
3 million children have been born through IVF since its inception in 1978.
Clearly Bush’s rhetoric of “crossing a moral line” is grossly insincere
and laughable, especially considering the appalling deaths of innocents
as a result of his war on terror. What Bush is really doing by virtue
of his embryo baby kissing and stem cell vetoing is pandering to one of
his most important constituencies, namely the religious right.
Meanwhile,
here in Canada, the (very) silent but powerful Christian minority has
completely taken advantage of Canadian complacency. Not knowing and not
caring is truly our national pastime. As I write this, many Canadians
are up in arms in regards to Bush’s veto, with very few realizing that
our own legislation is far more restrictive. Worse, Canadians are
oblivious to the fact that Christian notions of personhood are directly
inhibiting medical research and potential breakthroughs.
Ultimately, as
biopolitics matures as a social issue,
Canadians and Americans will eventually come to their senses and
acknowledge the importance of stem cell research. The benefit of
regenerative medicine carries profound implications for nearly
everyone. There are people alive today who could desperately use these
types of interventions. It’s about time we honoured the sanctity of
those lives that are actually being lived rather than levying
nonsensical notions of personhood onto a clump of cells.