Dear Editor,
This letter is for Michelle Nelson who wrote the sad letter entitled, ‘Why is my child not safe at school?’. It was on Page 8 in the Thursday, April 2, 2015 edition of the Rock Springs Daily Rocket-Miner.
I also write this letter to all children and all parents of bullied children, whether they have special needs or not. An observant parent or sibling can usually tell if a child is experiencing fear or all of a sudden is acting up or refusing to go to school. They feel powerless and helpless and sometimes they won’t tell anyone for fear of reprisal or ridicule and sometimes even feel ashamed. If you are seeing some of these things in your child, ask questions! Chances are, they just might be a victim of being bullied.
For those of you who did not read Michelle’s letter, I will recap for you. Her autistic son has been continually bullied and one of the attacks was so violent that his clothes were ripped and another time, in the bathroom where there are no cameras, her son was attacked and the bullies said he started it and Michael is the one who got in school suspension. Anyone who has dealt with autistic children know they do not like to be touched or taunted and it sickens me to think of how frightened and agitated Michael must have been and then to get in trouble for that? Are you kidding me?
A suggestion I have for all schools would be to assign a volunteer guardian for those that are bullied or who have special needs. This would be another student who would accompany these kids, special needs or not, as they go into the bathroom or walk down the hall. A lot of kids, especially those with special needs, do not have the problem solving skills or emotional maturity to handle an attack without blowing their cool. A personal advocate or guardian would be able to run interference for them and perhaps avoid some these horrid situations in our schools.
My granddaughter recently relocated to Utah but has been in the Sweetwater County School system since third grade. She is currently a high school sophomore. In middle school, the principal and a few teachers were notified that there was another girl and her friends who were bullying my granddaughter. They were notified on more than one occasion for different incidents.
We were told, “you’ll have that.” It was very frustrating! Then one day the offending child threw a snowball and hit her in the face and she had finally had enough. She chased her down and jumped on her and smacked her. Knowing my grandchild, the youngster is lucky she stopped there. She is not a special needs child and I mention this to draw attention to the fact that no one is safe from these goons and thugs.
Guess who got in trouble? Not the snowballing bully! My granddaughter is the one who got into all kinds of trouble at school for defending herself - she was even suspended. The point being is that either the teachers are too lazy, too overworked, or are detached from reality when it comes to real life where bullies do exist. They are not there for children or their parents when they come to them for help against these bullies.
At least that has been my personal experience and unfortunately, that was not the only time our pleas for help were ignored and she was bullied again out of reprisal.
Sadly, for the most part, you’re on your own and it usually boils down to a, “he said, she said” situation. Gee, I wonder who would be more capable of defending themselves when accused of wrong doing? An autistic and frightened and angry autistic child? Or maybe a bully who is smart enough to attack someone in a location like a bathroom where there can be no proof of their cowardly acts? The whole thing makes me sick, sick, sick.
There is help out there for those of you who have found what Michelle Nelson and I have shared with you to be an issue with your own child or the school they attend.
There is an organization in Lander called, “The Protection Advocacy System” that will go to bat for kids like Michael and my granddaughter.
They will help you and your child if the school system can’t or won’t. They are a nonprofit corporation authorized by Congress to assist folks with issues such as this. Their contact info is as follows:
The Protection Advocacy System
195 S 5th St
Lander WY 82520
307-332-8268
Email: wypandl@wypanda.com
http://www.wypanda.com/index.asp
This is a free service to help those who find themselves alone in the fight to protect their children or grandchildren.
They can make it stop. I hope that the parents of those that were so courageous as to pick on a special needs child were notified of their behavior?
Maybe the bullies are being bullied at home and this is how they think people who are disadvantaged are to be treated?
In my experience over the years, usually a person who resorts to this kind of behavior actually has very low self-esteem and it makes them feel more in control and powerful to demean others. How sad to have to make yourself feel good at the expense of others. Very sad indeed.
Good luck to you Michelle and her son and I hope you get ahold of these people to help you.
Simone Keevert
Green River
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