Euthanasia and assisted suicide are two topics that are seemingly untouchable and unthinkable in the United States, so it is counterintuitive to thing these things could ever be legal. But these very topics are being pushed through legislation in Belgium. In December of 2013, Belgium passed a bill that allowed youths to get euthanized.  While euthanasia in Belgium has been legal for years, it was previously illegal for people under 18 to get the procedure. As it can be expected, this bill has caused a serious backlash from the religious and pro-life parties. Those people believe that life is a gift, one that people should be thankful for.  The idea that someone can choose to end their life despite this gift is absurd to the protesters.  Others embrace the thought that they have the control to undergo euthanasia.  People with terminal illness, and that go through a lot of pain on a daily bases might feel enlightened to have the choice to escape their pain.

So should life be looked at as a gift that cannot be refused? Or should it be looked at a choice, something that can be escaped at any time?

Sources

1.  A deadly conflict of interest: why euthanasia in Belgium is so out of control
2. Belgium extends euthanasia law to kids
3. Belgium: Lawmakers vote for children’s ‘right to die’ euthanasia law
4. Belgium’s parliament votes through child euthanasia
5. Legal Euthanasia for Children In Belgium: Will It Trigger Death Tourism
6. Chilean girl appeals to president to be allowed to die
7. Euthanasia for children is hard to contemplate – but we must talk about it
8. Child euthanasia: Too hard to live, too young to die
9. The world needs to talk about child euthanasia
10. What Belgium’s child euthanasia law means for America and the Constitution