(LifeSiteNews) — The online backlash continues over YouTuber Jesse Ridgway’s announcement that he and his wife had their preborn child aborted over a prenatal Down syndrome diagnosis, with Ridgway now casting himself as a victim of pro-life criticism.

As covered Thursday by LifeSiteNews, Ridgeway, whose popular “McJuggerNuggets” channel boasts “Hilarious Skits, Awesome Web Series’, and Crazy Family Vlogs,” announced on Wednesday that he and his wife researched Down syndrome and decided to have their child killed in the womb, saying that they believed doing so would be “beneficial” for their family. He rationalized his decision in part on the statistic that more than 90 percent of children diagnosed with Down syndrome are aborted.

“We made a difficult decision that we believe in the long-run will be beneficial for our family. Thankfully, we had a choice,” he said. “It will take a little time to move on, but we are excited to try again in the future and hopefully have a better outcome.”

The post went viral, eliciting more than 15,000 replies so far, many expressing horror, disgust, and personal testimonies ranging from miscarriage accounts to stories of choosing life for Down syndrome children and attesting to their rights, value, prognosis, and dignity.

Now into the story’s third day, the backlash shows no signs of cooling, thanks in no small part to Ridgway making a lengthy follow-up post bemoaning the “hate and vitriol for two people grieving the loss of their unborn child and making an impossible decision.”

“The last 24 hours have exposed a side of humanity that is deeply disturbing. Being called ‘murderous pieces of sh-t, evil, compared to Hitler’ and receiving NON-STOP DEATH THREATS,” he wrote. 

“If you ever wanted to marvel at the depravity of people online, just check the replies on my latest tweet. It’s a sh-t-show of epic proportions. This is reflective of the current world and landscape we’re all living in,” he continued. “What’s more troubling is a lot of these people use God or Jesus as their justification for threatening us and wanting to cast us into Hell…seems pretty hypocritical.”

“Be careful where you source your information online, whether it’s disturbing propaganda accounts, AI, ragebait fear mongerers,…we’re living in a complicated time and authenticity and empathy will be the most important currencies of the future,” Ridgway added. “Anyway, I can’t wait to see all these words get minced and twisted again so people can grow their followings and stir outrage. It’s a natural ecosystem after all, bottom-feeders have to get their meal too!”

I’ve never seen such hate and vitriol for two people grieving the loss of their unborn child and making an impossible decision.

The last 24 hours have exposed a side of humanity that is deeply disturbing. Being called “murderous pieces of shit, evil, compared to Hitler” and…

— Jesse Ridgway (@McJuggerNuggets) June 5, 2026

A quick aside: Be careful where you source your information online, whether it’s disturbing propaganda accounts, AI, ragebait fear mongerers,…we’re living in a complicated time and authenticity and empathy will be the most important currencies of the future.

Anyway, I can’t…

— Jesse Ridgway (@McJuggerNuggets) June 5, 2026

Unsurprisingly, the new statement further inflamed tensions rather than defusing them.

We are marveling at the depravity of your decision to murder your child based on eugenics.

— Dr. Abby Johnson (@AbbyJohnson) June 5, 2026

You nailed it, Peter.

They are feeling guilt. This entire post was so that they could find some people who would understand what they did.

instead, they got ripped a New one.

— 🇺🇸🇺🇸Dr. Deplorabelle Chicky🇺🇸🇺🇸 (@annewhite436) June 5, 2026

Did Casey Anthony write this?

— Hans Fiene 🦬 (@HansFiene) June 5, 2026

You didn’t lose him to miscarriage or health complications, you killed him because he wasn’t perfect enough for you.

Stop playing victim and face the reality that you murdered your child. You are not the victims here, it is your now dead child who didn’t get a chance to live. https://t.co/2m43xx3E3f

— Kangmin Lee | 이강민 (@kangminlee) June 5, 2026

Bro kills his DS baby for YouTube (and Twitter) dollars and has the audacity to say “Anyway, I can’t wait to see all these words get minced and twisted again so people can grow their followings and stir outrage.” Wow. Just wow. https://t.co/rOCM3XVW7y

— Russ Cote (@RussCote) June 5, 2026

Down syndrome, or Trisomy 21, is a genetic disorder typically associated with physical growth delays, distinct facial traits, and often intellectual disability. Despite these challenges, a 2011 study published in the American Journal of Medical Genetics found that 99 percent of people with Down syndrome described themselves as “happy,” and only four percent of parents with Down children expressed regret about having their child.

Prominent individuals with Down syndrome, such as snow cone business owner Blake Pyron, writer John Franklin Stephens, and advocate Charlotte Fien serve as examples of their community’s dignity and potential. Yet around the world, Down syndrome is seen as a justification for aborting preborn children.

The pro-life Charlotte Lozier Institute has estimated that abortion reduces the U.S. Down community by 30 percent. Overseas, it’s been estimated that 90 percent of babies in Great Britain to receive a Down syndrome diagnosis are aborted, 65 percent in Norway, virtually 100 percent in Iceland, and 95 percent in Spain.

More information about the myths and facts about Trisomy 21 can be found at the National Down Syndrome Society’s website.