Why our family is saying Yes to Prop 2

by: LucysParents

Thu Oct 23, 2008 at 10:40:18 AM EDT

When our oldest daughter was 15, she was finally diagnosed with Crohn’s disease, and it threw our world into an upheaval. All throughout her high school years – which, by all accounts, should have been the best years of her life – we lived out every parent’s nightmare, watching our oldest child go in and out of the hospital way too many times. Surgery after surgery and test after test we helplessly looked on praying for the good health for our previously totally healthy child. By the time the last surgery was completed, she had lost much of her lower digestive system, including her rectum and colon.

Because Crohn’s disease is an auto-immune condition, treatments are few and far between, and there is no cure. It is for this reason that we are lifting our voices proudly in support of Proposal 2 which, if passed, would lift the ban on embryonic stem cell research in Michigan and give hope to our daughter and thousands across the state like her who could be treated through the scientific breakthrough of stem cell research.

So why did our entire family make this YouTube video?

Voting “yes” or for those who truly choose life on Prop 2 is so important to us and our family, and will be vitally important to the entire state, if passed. The proposal specifically stipulates that stem cell lines to be used in research would be those that are otherwise simply discarded into the trash, as if they were completely worthless. Not utilizing these cells is saying “NO” to life for people like our daughter.  In other states, parents are allowed to donate these extra cells to the cause of stem cell research, but Michigan – along with four other states – upholds a strict prohibition against this, and researchers can face up to 10 years in jail and extensive fines for attempting to use these cells to find cures. This is also not something that the taxpayers will be paying for like ad’s try to lead you to believe.

This is a wasteful practice, and must be stopped. Under Prop 2, parents will have the option of donating their extra cells to science, just as they do in over 40 other states around the country. Right here in Michigan, we will be able to develop cures and treatments for some of the most horrendous diseases and injuries out there, like Parkinson’s, ALS, spinal cord trauma, Alzheimer’s, and yes, even Crohn’s. Patients in Michigan will finally be able to look forward to the hope that has been for so long denied to them, thanks to this outdated ban. Most importantly we hope citizens realize that this is not a partisan issue! It is truly a choice for life issue.

Having undergone the experience ourselves, we’ve come to realize that having a debilitating illness can happen to anyone, and can strike at any time. It could be your friend, your neighbor, your coworker, your parent, or even your child or grandchild who could use a helping hand, and that help can come in the form of stem cell research. How dare you say no to those fighting to stay healthy!  We did a YouTube Video just because we feel so strongly about this and because we feel if average people like us do not get involved and speak up, who will?  We are not political people but people of justice.  This is a justice issue for all of us in our family and should be for you.

As the parents of a daughter who could stand to gain so much from embryonic stem cell research, we are strongly urging everyone in Michigan to vote “yes” on Proposal 2. Saying “yes” to Prop 2 means saying “yes” to cures, and most importantly, “yes” to our children and Michigan’s future. Please vote “yes” on Prop 2, and help make Michigan a state that is about cures, not bans.