Autism Society Florida - Agrees STOP HITTING OUR KIDS. NOW!

[Guest guest]

The board of the Autism Society Florida agrees with the position of Family Network on Disabilities. The abuse must stop now! The only way to make it stop is to place a moratorium on corporal punishment. We also need to really address, once and for all, what amounts to protectionism of teachers and other school personnel by school districts, Teachers Unions, School Boards, the Florida Department of Education, the Department of Children and Families, etc.

If a parent were to commit any of the abuse that the school personnel are accused of committing, they would find themselves in jail and charged with child abuse. For some reason, school personnel appear to be above the law. Furthermore, if a parent reports a suspected incident to the school, the school in turn reports to the Department of Children and Families and the parents are investigated for suspected abuse, not the teachers? There is something wrong with the system when a child comes home from school with bruises, bloody and broken body parts and the parents get a visit from the Department of Children and Families, but the school personnel either get a slap on the wrist or no punishment at all.

Most teachers, principles, paraprofessionals, etc. are not the problem and are doing a good job of working with and teaching our children with disabilities, but there are several (too many) that are not appropriately addressing these children's’ needs and the system is actually helping them to do harm to our children.

We implore Governor Crist, Commissioner , as well as all Superintendents of Education and School Boards across the state, to declare and impose this immediate moratorium to corporal punishment. Also, allowing the schools to police themselves is tantamount to the fox guarding the hen house. We need to have independent investigations from outside authorities (with appropriate experience) to make sure that the student that is injured (and their families) gets fair representation. The system is set up to protect the school personnel and NOT the child that suffers the abuse. This is wrong and should not be allowed to continue.

Furthermore, the Autism Society thinks that restraint and seclusion needs to be addressed immediately. Too many of our students on the autism spectrum are being subjected to physical abuse and inappropriate restraints. The use of restraints and seclusion are supposed to be a last resort. Unfortunately, they are being used as the first resort and the lack of proper training has caused severe physical and mental harm to these children. Many of the children with autism cannot communicate appropriately. As such, they are misunderstood and many times the very staff that is supposed to help them communicate and avoid meltdowns, actually make matters worse. This staff is supposed to be trained in Positive Behavioral Supports (PBS) and they are not. These types of supports are proven to work. Why isn’t the state of Florida mandating them? The ACLU/HRW report that Rich Labelle cited also show that these interventions work. The Department of Education knows they work. The frustrating part of all this, is this has been an issue for many years and it does not appears to be changing. The Department of Education says that the local districts have the say over what happens. The only way to address the situation properly is to change the law.

In closing, I understand that the safety of all of our students and school staff are at issue, but the system has gotten to the point where we are damaging and abusing these individuals because of their disability. That cannot be allowed to continue. It is a violation of their civil rights.

Regards,

Ven Sequenzia, Jr.

President

Autism Society - Florida