This legislation is a wake-up call for all of us, because laws can change quickly and dramatically which affect our children, no matter where we live.
New York recently passed a law to allow for use of aversive interventions on children if deemed absolutely necessary.
While the goal was to put parameters on how schools discipline and control special needs children, unfortunately the result was that aversives are now allowed ( electric shock, holding or tying children down, witholding of food, drink, sleep, clothing using noxious sprays to the face, painful tastes to the lips, locking them in rooms, etc. ) in certain circumstances.
In my opinion, this decision legalizes abuse in schools and residential facilities. Some basic human rights have been taken away from special needs children in New York, and unfortunately it reveals the darker side of how we regard children with special needs in general, in terms of their humanity and worth.
If a teacher in a typical school setting punished a student in any of these ways, it would be considered reprehensible. Not only would they be fired, but they would subsequently be criminally prosecuted for engaging in these same acts. How is it possible then, that these same punishments, considered reprehensible and intolerable, are condoned and protected under law for children with special needs?
I'm not an attorney, but I seem to remember something in US IDEA law that states that someone with a disability cannot be punished or disciplined for a behavior that is caused by their disability. With PDD or autism, behaviors such as flapping hands, repeating sentences, tantruming, biting oneself, and a multitude of other behaviors caused by PDD or autism should not be punished, under the IDEA law.
For example, no one would ever punish someone with a neurological disability such as Parkinsons, for shaking or trembling. You'd never hear "stop shaking!" or "quiet body!" Yet our children are constantly punished for behaviors that are caused by their neurological problem- their autism. The fact is that if they didn't have autism, they wouldn't be doing these things. A punitive "hands down!" voice command when a child is flapping their hands, or a time-out for scripting lines from a video are some examples of punishing a child for a behavior that is caued by their autism. In my opinion, many schools are breaking IDEA law by punishing students for behaviors that are caused by their autism or other disabilities.
And now New York has the go-ahead to administer aversives to children with disabilities in certain circumstances, as determined by school personnel. In other words, whenever the teacher or administrator deems "special circumstances" at the time. I can guarantee that children will be abused, and it will be sanctioned by the state. This is a decision that needs radical reversal, immediately.
Sandra Sinclair,www.autismvoice.com
To see the legislation, click here. (It is very long and very legal.)
