Recently I learned about Germany's 1939 implementation of the T4 Euthanasia program.
This evil program sought to quietly erase those who were considered unworthy of life. People with disabilities (mental and physical) were severely undervalued and then killed. It went from targeting children to quickly expanding to include teens and adults. Across the broader disability-murder initiative (including, but beyond T4), Nazi Germany killed roughly 275,000 people involuntarily.1
T4 came after forced sterilization was implemented, which impacted roughly 400,000 under Nazi law who apparently didn't fit the social standards of their country's leadership.2 Those with schizophrenia, epilepsy, and even chronic alcoholism could be sterilized under German law. Even the United States has forced sterilization on over 60,000 people in its history.3
Germany even used deception to euthanize people under the guise of better care.6 What happened to these people was evil. To have involuntary euthanasia by gassing, drugs, or other means is absolutely disgusting.
What T4 reminds me of
You may consider this a stretch, but I'm going to relate the T4 event to a modern bioethical dilemma - medical aid in dying. In 2024, Canada euthanized over 16,000 people4, the U.S. likely had over 2,000 MAID uses, and worldwide there were likely over 30,000 MAID deaths total.7
30,000+ in one year is a lot of people. For contrast, there were around 20,000 U.S. homicides (including those categorized as justifiable) in 2024. Also, Canadian MAID provisions list the disease as the cause of death, but technically the euthanizing makes MAID about the 4th or 5th leading cause of death there.
I believe MAID differs overall from what happened in Germany, but we may still notice some similarities.
Is it different?
T4 sought to erase so many people who were considered unfit to live in Hitler's Germany.
The unofficial decree signed by Hitler for the T4 program called for "Gnadentod," meaning "merciful death." Today we may call for the mercy killing of those who face harsh illnesses.
Sure, you might say that today it's someone's choice whether or not they want physician-assisted suicide, but can this be abused? I believe it has been.
Here are two major issues: one is the intent (killing vs. healing), and two is the message it leaves (that life can be discarded). A lethal overdose of medication has a clear objective: to kill. Some places allow for a doctor to administer the medication, but the U.S. currently limits MAID to a self-administered prescription (in the jurisdictions where MAID is legal). This can't be the cost of compassion. It's too high.
Overlooked value
How often do we simply overlook or undervalue the people around us? A prenatal screening indicates Down syndrome; thus some conclude that it's time to abort. Someone in Canada gets diagnosed with a terminal illness, and MAID might get recommended.
I understand that people can truly be in difficult situations. They may be in great pain or suffering, but I don't believe that justifies this flawed solution.
Pushing MAID access doesn't actually promote healing or treatment that supports LIFE. It specifically targets the end of life.
Promoting life should look like giving care and helping someone live a full life. Why should we hasten death to come faster in a plea for control? How can that be compassion?
Is there a better approach?
I believe so, yes. What if we were better about encouraging people of the value their life still holds? A diagnosis doesn't need to be the defining end to a story. Actually, an argument for MAID is that it gives people control, but that control is short-lived.
If we could better promote care and purposeful life, then maybe people would be slower to choose this. Perhaps if MAID wasn't so encouraged, more healthcare and more patients would fight a little harder.
I genuinely want the best for these people. I never want to push palliative or hospice care as a perfect option. I'm a Christian, and I only believe in one perfect answer (Christ). You may disagree with me on that, but He has been the best part of my life.
This article may differ from your viewpoint, but I hope that something in it can encourage you. Ask yourself this question. Is MAID a perfect answer across the board? If no, then we should be cautious.
To conclude
I don't know whether anyone will read this or make it this far. There's a good chance this will be the last article published on this website.
If you are reading this, I want you to catch something. You and the people around you have intrinsic value. It doesn't matter whether you're poor, rich, white, black, Asian, productive, or bed-ridden. There is a value that can't be compared to animals. We are humans.
I urge you to take a step back and just consider the gift of life. What decision would be most admirable? What decision would show the most honorable use of life?
If you have made it this far, thank you. I hope the best for you, and I hope that this helps you in some way. I hope you can fulfill your life to the fullest, and that you can truly impact those around you! We may not all have the same abilities, but we all have a purpose. That purpose matters, so use your life the best you can.
