Diane Coleman

In the following viewpoint, Diane Coleman maintains that voluntary euthanasia should not be legalized because it would violate the civil rights of disabled persons. According to Coleman, the majority of people whom Jack Kevorkian has helped commit suicide have been disabled, not terminally ill. She charges that Kevorkian’s ability to avoid prosecution and to garner media attention for his activities reveals people’s tendency to devalue the lives of the disabled. The author contends that if assisted suicide were legalized, it would mostly be offered to, or even forced upon, the disabled. Diane Coleman is president of the activist group Not Dead Yet.

As you read, consider the following questions:

1. What is the largest minority group in the country, according to Coleman?
2. What does Stephen Drake, as quoted by the...