Disability rights and social justice activists protested yesterday at the First International conference "Ethics, Science and Moral Philosophy of
Assisted Human Reproduction",  http://www.humanreproethics.org/welcome.htm held at the Royal Society London. Talks included:
* Why we are morally obliged to genetically enhance our children - Julian Savulescu
* Gay science: choosing our children's sexual orientation - Timothy Murphy
* Preventing the existence of people with disabilities - Jeff McMahon
· Eugenics some lessons from the past -- David Galton

For the past several years, a small but influential network of established scientists, bioethicists, and authors has been working to convince people that reproductive cloning and inheritable genetic modification should not be banned. This conference is part of a deliberate strategy to advance a eugenic agenda.
Press releases which include background information follow
Leaflet text available from  peopleagainsteugenics@hotmail.com
MEDIA RELEASE
PHOTO OPPORTUNITY

PLACE Royal Society, Carlton House Terrace, London SW1
DATE/ TIME 9 am Sept 30th
Embargo: 8:30 AM Sept 30th 2004

Disabled people and allies condemn pro-eugenics conference

People Against Eugenics (1) will be protesting today at a pro-eugenics
conference at the Royal Society in London (2). Campaigners will be arguing
that the Royal Society should not allow a platform to argue for the
elimination of disabled people and for cloning and designer babies.

The conference is a blatant attempt to advance a eugenic agenda, and has no
semblance of balance. No disabled people have been asked to speak. The
main conference organiser, the pioneer of IVF, Robert Edwards, represents
the link between old-fashioned eugenics and the new free-market version.
Edwards has been a former President and a leading member of the British
Eugenics Society since the 1960s (3). He believes it is a 'sin' to have
disabled children (see quote 1 below). Another conference organiser, Edgar
Dahl, supports sex selection and reproductive cloning.

In addition to these, John Harris and David Galton have supported eugenics
as a positive good (quote 2). Harris and Jeff McMahan believe that people
should be allowed to kill disabled babies, since they are supposedly less
than fully human (quotes 3 and 4). Gregory Stock is a well-known advocate
of 'improving' children via genetic engineering and Julian Savulescu will be
arguing the 'moral' case for doing so at the conference.

Other speakers argue an absolute 'right' of parental choice to design and
select our children, no matter what the social consequences. John Robertson
has argued that this 'right' means that cloning and sex selection should be
allowed (4) and Savulescu believes that parents should be allowed to abort
children with teeth defects (5). Timothy Murphy says that, if it becomes
possible, parents should be allowed to prevent the birth of gay children,
since even a massive reduction in the number of gay people would not be
sufficient harm to restrict 'reproductive liberty' (6).

People Against Eugenics (PAE) rejects the claim that eugenics ended after
the Holocaust. Many of these speakers clearly share the early 20th century
eugenics movement's aim of preventing disabled people being born, but they
have different, more up-to-date means. In fact, many early 20th century
eugenicists, including the eugenics movement's founder, Francis Galton, also
opposed coercive legislation, favouring persuasion and what we would today
call market forces. The advocacy of 'reproductive liberty' is a key part of
advancing the agenda of free-market eugenics. PAE supports women's right to
choose abortion, but does not believe this includes some 'right' to design
our children.

Disabled campaigner, Rachel Hurst, said: "Disabled people are human beings
too - a 'healthy' nation is one in which difference is included and
celebrated - not a nation designed by the powerful."

PAE campaigner Holly Williams said: "The timing of this conference is a
blast from the past in a society celebrating the achievements of the
Paralympics and the new disability equality act. There needs to be a bigger
public debate about what sort of a society we want to live in. PAE is in
favour of an inclusive and supportive society where disabled people have
equal rights, and adequate financial support. Social justice will help us be
a healthy and happy population. Eugenics is morally unacceptable, elitist,
and medically risky."

For more information on today's demonstration contact:  peopleagainsteugenics@hotmail.com
Quotes from speakers.

Robert Edwards: 'Soon it will be a sin for parents to have a child which
carries the heavy burden of genetic disease. We are entering a world where
we have to consider the quality of our children.' (Speaking at European
Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology, reported in Metro, 5 July
1999).

John Harris: "Eugenics is the attempt to create fine healthy children and
that's everyone's ambition." Harris told the BBC that couples who choose to
have disabled babies are "misguided". news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/3120478.stm

John Harris: "I don't think infanticide is always unjustifiable." Daily
Telegraph Jan 25 2004

Jeff McMahan: "Because of their rudimentary cognitive and emotional
capacities {congenitally severely cognitively impaired human beings] have a
relatively weak time-relative interest in continuing to live." The Ethics of
Killing NY Oxford University Press 2002, p204.
"There are no morally significant differences between severely retarded
human beings (PAE note: this means all human beings, not just newborn
babies) and animals with comparable psychological capacities." Ibid, p228

Notes for editors

1) 'People Against Eugenics' is an alliance of disability rights
campaigners, feminists, social justice activists and members of the public
who have come together to oppose the eugenic agenda of this conference.
2) First International conference "Ethics, Science and Moral Philosophy of
Assisted Human Reproduction",  http://www.humanreproethics.org/welcome.htm.
3) The Eugenics Society, which was founded in, 1907 changed its name to The
Galton Institute in 1989. In 1999 PAE held a protest at its conference in
London, at which three speakers (Arthur Jensen, Richard Lynn and Glayde
Whitney) who are well known for claiming that black people are genetically
inferior to whites were speaking.
4) Children of Choice: Freedom and the New Reproductive Technologies, John
Robertson (Princeton University Press, 1994).
5) 'Its only teeth - are there limits to genetic testing? Aldred, Crawford,
Savariayan and Savulescu, 2003 Clinical Genetics: 63 333-339.
6) Gay Science Timothy F. Murphy Columbia University Press New York 1997.

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MEDIA RELEASE 2- following Royal Society statement

PLACE Royal Society, Carlton House Terrace, London SW1
DATE/ TIME 9 am Sept 30th 2004

Embargo: 8:30 AM Sept 30th 2004
DISABILITY discrimination concern forces legal inquiry over eugenics conference
On the day that the new disability discrimination legislation comes into force, People Against Eugenics (PAE) can reveal that a conference being held at the Royal Society today and tomorrow has raised such serious concerns about potential sex and disability discrimination that the Royal Society has been forced to take legal advice about whether it can continue. In response to a letter from (PAE), the Royal Society has been forced to release a statement saying that its lawyers were particularly concerned about four talks being given at the conference:
* Why we are morally obliged to genetically enhance our children - Julian Savulescu
* Gay science: choosing our children's sexual orientation - Timothy Murphy
* Preventing the existence of people with disabilities - Jeff McMahon
* Eugenics some lessons from the past -- David Galton
PAE will be demonstrating outside the conference from 8:30am tomorrow morning.
Disabled campaigner, Rachel Hurst, said: "Disabled people are human beings too - a 'healthy' nation is one in which difference is included and celebrated - not a nation designed by the powerful."
PAE campaigner Holly Williams said: "This proves how dangerous and divisive this conference is. Even if the talks are not actually illegal, the Royal Society should never allow its premises to be used to promote eugenics and hatred of disabled people."
More information about the speakers was contained in our earlier press release, which can be obtained from the PAE e-mail address.

Notes to editors
'People Against Eugenics' is an alliance of disability rights campaigners, feminists, social justice activists and members of the public who have come together to oppose the eugenic agenda of this conference. PAE supports women's right to choose (abortion).
First International conference "Ethics, Science and Moral Philosophy of Assisted Human Reproduction",  http://www.humanreproethics.org/welcome.htm