Caterina Scorsone wants equity for every child.
In a personal essay for Good Morning America, Scorsone 39, discussed her 3-year-old daughter Paloma “Pippa” Michaela while also explaining why Down syndrome advocacy is close to her heart.
“Pippa has Down syndrome. But Pippa isn’t Down syndrome. Pippa is Pippa,” Scorsone wrote, adding, “Pippa is different. So are you and so am I.”
“She has a visual learning profile that makes it easier for her to learn from pictures and printed words than from hearing a teacher lecture,” the mom of three shared.
“She could read simple words at 3 years old but took longer than her sister to be able to talk because of differences in her oral motor planning and muscle tone. … She is small for her age but her eyes are wise. She always says what she means and doesn’t suffer fools.”
Scorsone also shares daughters Eliza, 8, and Lucinda (a.k.a. Lucky), 10 months, with ex Rob Giles.
Scorsone added how Pippa “has needs that are specific to the way her body was made,” but revealed how every human being also has individualistic needs.
“For Pippa to accomplish what she chooses to accomplish, to thrive and fulfill the desires she has for herself, she needs to be supported in specific ways. So do I,” wrote Scorsone.
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“To have the same opportunities for fulfillment that I have, Pippa needs things like therapies designed to support her learning differences and physical challenges,” wrote Scorsone.
“She needs more media visibility for people who look like her, so that people recognize her as part of their community, and so she can recognize herself in the aspirational characters she sees on TV and in the press.”
“But human beings are different, we are specific, and we need to be loved and supported individually,” she added.
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