Chapter Fifty-Five - On the Brink: of a Better Way to Die

New York is on the verge of becoming the 11th state plus DC to give citizens suffering from terminal diseases the right to die when and as they choose. Oregon was the first state  25 years ago to grant this right. Religious leaders, champions of the right to life, even some advocates for the disabled worry that such  laws  open the way to abuse, coercion, and worse. It seems never to have occurred anywhere, but death is a  fearful issue and dying fraught with guilt and worry.  We talk with a lawyer and a legislator who have led the campaign in New York for a better say to die, forcing the issues into the open and swaying opinions so that a bill making it’s way through the legislature now could shortly be on the governor’s desk for a signature.

Corinne Carey from Troy NY is a  lawyer, organizer, and policy strategist.  For some time her mission has been to improve care and expand options for people facing the end of their lives.  She joined the non-profit organization Compassion & Choices after nearly a decade with the New York Civil Liberties Union where she served as deputy legislative director and where as co-chair of the statewide Women’s Equality Coalition she helped lead efforts to modernize New York’s abortion law well before most believed that Roe v. Wade was in jeopardy. She is a graduate of the University at Buffalo School of Law.

State Assemblyman Al Taylor has represented the 71st District of Upper Manhattan since 2017. He’s been an advocate for that community for more than 20 years pushing economic opportunities, social change and reform of the criminal justice system. He has fought to reduce gun violence and hate crimes against transgendered people in his neighborhood. He holds a degree in public communication from Lehman College and a Master of Divinity from Nyack College Alliance Theological Seminary. He and wife Gwendolyn have five children.