Paralympics commercial star: 'I feel very strongly about being pro-life'
29/7/16 Christian Concern
The star of a promotional campaign for this year's Paralympic games has spoken up about the value of the life of the unborn child and the way that the disabled are viewed in society.
Tony Dee, an Australian born with spina bifida, is the singer for the commercial, which is part of the 'We're the Superhumans' campaign that began in 2012 for the London Paralympics.
Tony says he hopes the video will increase awareness of those with disabilities and positively affect the way they are perceived. He also says his own experience has informed his views on abortion.
Spotted on YouTube
A production agent spotted Tony Dee on YouTube, singing a cover of Frank Sinatra's 'Come Fly With Me'. When Tony was told it was for a Paralympics commercial, he was doubtful at first, but with his wife's encouragement he decided to film an audition video.
He was given the lead role and flew to the UK to film the commercial, which now has over 2.6 million views on YouTube and over 26 million views on Facebook.
Defied expectations
Doctors were unaware that Tony had spina bifida, which leaves him wheelchair-bound, until he was born.
He was operated on in the first hour of his life, and his parents were told by doctors that he would never amount to much and should be put in some kind of institution.
Tony's parents staunchly refused but he says that today, doctors still devalue the lives of those with disabilities.
"It scares me how if that could happen in 1969 to a baby that had already been born, and I've had the full life that I've had, doctors are making guesses about babies that haven't been born yet," he told LifeSiteNews.
Tony did well academically, defying expectations, and enjoys a happy marriage to his wife Caroline, as well as his career as a singer.
'I feel very strongly about being pro-life'
Tony Dee continued to express his concerns about how the disabled are viewed and why he considers himself to be pro-life.
"The thing that stands out to me is that people should see people with disabilities as having the ability to live a life that is worthwhile," he said.
"So I feel very strongly about being pro-life and am very concerned about the moves towards a society where we have couples becoming pregnant expecting a baby who might have a disability and then getting rid of the baby way too easily."
Australian MP Rob Pyne has put forward legislation that, if implemented, would completely decriminalise abortion in Queensland, effectively making abortion permissible up to birth for any reason.
Responding to this, Tony Dee said:
"If it's possible to be wrong about the life of a child just born, then how much easier is it to be wrong about the life of an unborn baby? It just beggars belief what is going on, on so many levels. I can't begin to make a response."
Pro-life campaigns
The UK has a number of pro-life campaigns that are gaining momentum.
One such campaign, Don't Screen Us Out, is in response to proposed pre-natal testing that would lead to an increase in babies with Down's syndrome being aborted.
The campaign has written an open letter to Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt, asking that his department consider the concerns of those with Down's syndrome, their families and the wider community, and to do more to protect and value them.
Read more and sign the open letter.