Had you heard of Sarah Palin before August 2008?

… I had.  No matter which party you are affiliated with or where your politics lie, there’s no denying you know the name Sarah Palin.  But many people in the Lower 48 states had never heard of her until that hot summer August 29 day in 2008 when John McCain announced she would be the Vice Presidential candidate for the Republican ticket.  From that day on, she became practically a household name of radio talk shows, TV news broadcasts, tabloids and late night comedy fame. 

However, I remember reading about Sarah Palin before that August day when a brief article ran on May 4 that same year in our local newspaper in Ocala, Florida about her giving birth to her little baby boy, Trig, who has Down’s syndrome.  It featured a photo of Todd and Sarah Palin with Trig and was picked up by the Associated Press.  No doubt the story made newspapers all across the country, like this one for example.

According to the story, the mother of four healthy children had never had problems with her other pregnancies when she received the news that her fifth would have Down’s syndrome.  She was quoted as saying, “We’ve (she and her husband) both been very vocal about being pro-life.  We understand that every innocent life has wonderful potential.”

She goes on to say that she wasn’t going to shirk her responsibilities as the governor of the largest state in the U.S. “It’s a sign of the times that I’m able to do this” (be a mom of a special needs child and the governor), she said.  “I can think of so many male candidates who watched families grow while they were in office.”  Yet as I look back on the ridicule she received on the campaign trail in 2008 regarding this special little boy, I think she was a bit naïve just a few months before when she thought the country and even the world would get it.

Well I say, why not?  Why can’t a woman hold a job and still be a good mother to her special needs child?  Women across the country do it every day!  ARC Marion clients’ parents right here in Ocala do it every day.  There does appear to be a bit of a double standard when it comes to the role of the mother in the lives of special needs children, but all of that is for another discussion on another day.

I simply bring up Sarah Palin today, because I commend her for taking on the role of a mother and a professional.  In my lifetime, I can’t recall a political figure bringing up special needs individuals in a political speech like she did at the Republican National Convention in 2008.  Yes, Eunice Kennedy Shriver was the patriarch of the Special Olympics and fought for inclusion for all people with developmental disabilities.  But to my knowledge, her brothers who held political offices never really seemed to campaign on those issues.  Maybe if someone did, in every state, there wouldn’t be the funding cuts we’ve been seeing for decades for these special people.  It’s time for someone to step up, be heard and advocate on behalf of those with special needs.  It may be someone else, or it may just be Sarah Palin.