University of Virginia Library

Illegitimacy

Mr. Cy Deavour's letter published
in Tuesday's Cavalier Daily
shows a sad lack of knowledge
and insight into the problem of
illegitimacy in the indigent population
of this country.

I make no contention with his
belief that begetting children for
whom adequate care cannot be provided
is a "questionable practice"
rater than a "moral issue." If
he believes it is right to "bring
children into the world" to suffer
deprivation of adequate food,
clothing, and housing, to never
know a father, and to be a lifelong
object of social ostracism, that
is his prerogative.

I do, however, refute his statement
that "most of the children
in question are conceived with the
same intensity of love and emotion
as the legitimate ones," and that
"they are mostly loved, wanted,
and appreciated." It is quite apparent
that Mr. Deavours has not
the slightest concept of the volume
of known and suspected criminal
abortion in the U. S. today. Nor
has he considered the numerous
homes for unwed mothers or the
numbers of girls who leave town
to return several months later after
delivering their babies and putting
them up for adoption Likewise,
I doubt that he has had to deal
with the anguished girls and their
families who pour through hospital
outpatient departments and delivery
rooms every year.

The illegitimate children are conceived
in intense physical desire and
emotion and are more the
about the neck than the "loved,
wanted, and appreciated children"
that Mr. Deavours perceives.

A display of such profound
ignorance of a most pressing problem
of modern society by a
graduate student is appalling and
I suggest that, if Mr. Deavours
is truly concerned over the problem,
rather than trying to salve
his own conscience, he become
more conversant with the basic
facts involved.