Andrew Bernstein

In the following viewpoint, philosophy professor Andrew Bernstein argues that Jack Kevorkian was fighting for individuals’ right to die when he granted a terminally ill patient’s request for euthanasia in November 1998. The right to die is an essential part of the freedom to control one’s own life, the author maintains, and therefore laws prohibiting euthanasia and physician-assisted suicide are unjust. Bernstein is a senior writer for the Ayn Rand Institute, which promotes individual rights and limited government.

Editor’s Note: The following viewpoint was written in March 1999, just as Kevorkian’s trial was beginning; the suicide doctor was ultimately convicted of second-degree murder and sentenced to ten to twenty-five years in prison.

As you read, consider the following questions:

1. How many times has Kevorkian been acquitted of assisting...