By Breon Perry •
Losing a family member can be a traumatizing experience for anyone who has gone through that pain. Losing a family member by their own choice can be an even heavier weight on a person’s shoulder. But, to lose a family member by euthanasia is an experience many haven’t felt and opens up the door to the conversation of whether or not that choice should be in that person’s own hands.
Howard University student, Sydnee Jenkins has had the first-hand experience with death with dignity. As an African American, her great uncle was faced with the decision in April of 2016. Her mother, Shaneé Jenkins and she weren’t familiar with what was happening to their uncle but as they have moved forward from this time and learned more they both detail how painful it was to see their family member go through this and make that kind of decision.
“I don’t think it’s something that you see often in the black community. Especially considering I live in Milwaukee and he’s in California, I just knew it was a hard time because of my mom’s reaction,” the younger Jenkins said.
Shaneé Jenkins described the experience as unusual.
“I knew that he was very ill and that time wasn’t on our side. It just was strange seeing him choose to end his own life.”
Her visit is when she started to realize the magnitude of his decision.
“The hardest part was when visiting, he just wasn’t the same person. The man I grew up around had almost withered away. Even then it wasn’t like I thought he was going to die, so to hear this is what he chose to do made it very tough on Syd and I.”
Shaneé Jenkins does try to understand the decision from her uncle’s point of view.
“What I try to accept is that he got to go out on his own terms. Of course, I feel pain, and I miss my uncle every day, but I do find some comfortability in knowing he got to choose his own terms.”
The Jenkins family wasn’t even aware this was an option for their uncle until he presented it to them over the phone a few months before the procedure.
In general, in the black community, suicide is a taboo topic. Due to religious reasoning, it is often frowned upon by the community. Pastors and reverends typically condemn this action in its traditional form, however, some in the community find themselves at a crossroads when examining the idea of suicide from the medical perspective.
Donald Robinson an assistant reverend at First Baptist Church in Northwest Washington DC, thinks the situation is more niche than whether suicide is simply “okay” or not.
“In traditional teachings, it is a sin to take your own life and we believe that to be true here. But in situations, as you’ve mentioned, there is not a clear wrong or right course of action. I wouldn’t suggest it to our members, but I don’t feel at liberty to tell them it is a sin.”
The association of euthanasia and suicide is what creates blurred lines. These sentiments amongst the community is reflected in research that shows blacks are more likely to vote against the legalization of euthanasia.
In an article from The Federalist, Leona Redmond an activist who opposed the legalization of assisted suicide in D.C. thinks the law was made to target elderly black people with a lack of resources. She claimed that politicians were looking to cut medical care cost by implementing this law.
The word euthanasia comes from the Greek language which means a ‘good death’. Euthanasia comes in different forms. There is active euthanasia which entails taking medication that causes death, to passive measures like withholding treatment. There are also scenarios where there is voluntary consent from the patient and involuntary consent, which is where the family requests the medicine. However, involuntary consent is outlawed everywhere in the United States. Another option is for the physician to recommend euthanasia.
The issue of assisted death often causes massive debate whenever the measure comes up for legislation. Opposing sides debate the legality of it, ethics, human rights, health, religious, and other aspects.
On February 18th, 2017, the District of Columbia passed the Death with Dignity Bill, allowing terminally ill adults the option to end their lives through lethal doses of medication.
Washington D.C. followed Washington, Oregon, Colorado, Hawaii, Vermont, and Montana in passing assisted suicide legislation.
This past March in Maryland a Death with Dignity bill was defeated in the Senate by a single vote. This came as a surprise given that a poll the month before found that 66 percent of the participants supported a death with dignity bill.
Some who oppose assisted death claim that passing “death with dignity... is not indicative of civilized society.” There is a claim that life is a natural right, and the unnatural end to someone’s life is inherently a clash with the concept of the right to life.
Traditionally attempted suicides and completed suicides are usually committed by patients with mental health problems or addiction issues. It is also documented in patients suffering from obsessive compulsive disorder .
Hence, it is essential to assess the mental status of the individual seeking an assisted death procedure. In classical teachings, a suicide attempt is considered as a desperate call for help or assistance.
Washington D.C.’s Death with Dignity Act said: “Actions taken in accordance with [Death with Dignity Act] shall not, for any purpose, constitute suicide, assisted suicide, mercy killing, or homicide under the law.”
The Death with Dignity National Center (DDNC) established in 1994 is an organization that acts as a liaison between patients requesting death with dignity and medical professionals. DDNC was started in Portland, Oregon, the first state to pass a death with dignity bill. Mark Glaze is the campaign strategist and point of contact for Washington D.C.
Glaze is a private consultant. He previously was the executive director for Everytown for Gun Safety, the nation’s largest gun violence prevention group.
“We’re here to make sure families don’t feel alone in this process. There is obviously the legal work we have to get through but it is important families are able to come to peace of mind and accept their loved ones' decisions.”
DDNC also talks about the importance of “value-neutral language” as to not trigger any buzzwords such as “euthanasia” to help families cope.
Glaze does mention how it is rewarding but tough work.
“Sometimes these families are unable to understand why, and in those situations, it is difficult to help reel a family back in during these times.”
When it comes down to the specific breakdown of race and assisted death, Glaze said the community they see the least in these situations, is the black community. He tried to pinpoint a reason but he says it seems to vary.
“I can’t say exactly why we see so few of them. I guess religion could play a prominent role or even the lack of sufficient healthcare in these communities. But my best guess, honestly, is most probably don’t even know it is an option for them”
With less than a fourth of the states in the US having a Death with Dignity bill, it continues to be a topic that flies under the radar in most communities.