Little Alta Fixsler’s parents are fighting an exhausting battle against British authorities who believe their daughter is better off dead.
Born in December 2018, Alta suffered major brain damage at birth, and doctors with the Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust in England initially thought she would not survive, according to a Change.org petition supporting her.
But Alta, now 2, clung to life, and her parents, Abraham and Chaya Fixsler, want to transport her to specialists in Israel or the United States for medical treatment.
However, British authorities will not let them go, The Federalist reports.
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Instead, doctors with the government-run healthcare system and a judge agreed that Alta’s ventilator and other life-sustaining medical support should be removed.
In May, a British court ruled that the toddler “has no quality of life” and her medical care should be withdrawn, according to the report.
“The burdens of Alta’s life outweigh any benefits that [British authorities have] been able to ascertain,” the court decided.
The Fixslers, Hasidic Jews who believe euthanasia is a form of murder, appealed to the European Court of Human Rights, but the court rejected their request, according to the Jewish Life League.
Hospitals in the U.S. and Israel are ready to receive her for treatment, the family said. America also granted a visa to the little girl to come for treatment, and Israeli President Reuven Rivlin even wrote to British Prince Charles on Alta’s behalf, saying her case is “a matter of grave and urgent humanitarian importance.”
Several religious and pro-life organizations also are advocating for Alta and her family, including the Coalition for Jewish Values and International Religious Freedom Roundtable.
“Once a child has been placed on a ventilator, Jewish law unequivocally prohibits deliberately discontinuing the ventilation so as to hasten the approach of death, as this is akin to murder,” the coalition wrote in an appeal on behalf of the toddler.
But as Federalist writer Mary Vought pointed out, England has a record of making life-ending medical decisions about what is best for children against the will of their parents. Charlie Gard and Alfie Evans are two other tragic examples.
“As the mother of two young daughters, including one with a disability, I find the British willingness to substitute the judgment of the state for the wishes of two loving, qualified parents deeply troubling,” Vought responded. “The callous language used in its rulings … shows the way in which the U.K. court system devalues the lives of the most vulnerable in society.”
A petition supporting Alta and her family has more than 44,000 signatures. Find it here.
