Kids get bullied, and special needs kids even more so. Doesn’t make it right. But what happens when people are so proud of it that they want it recorded to video and posted to the web?
That’s what happens in this video. A group of kids are bullying an autistic kid. Only one throws the punch, but another is ready and waiting with a cell phone camera to record the event.
http://www.abc2news.com/video/videoplayer.swf?dppversion=16926
Kaleb wants to put the bullying behind him but, as he says, “It’s like a groundhog trying to run from its shadow.’ The bully has been charged with 2nd degree assault.
Left Brain Right Brain 
Things you don’t want to hear, but need to hear:
a) This isn’t new. Only the documentation is new. If you have a few hours to deal with flashbacks, I could tell you Stories.
b) These kids are learning it from their parents. I went to school with people who are now parents, and are the villians of said Stories.
c) Look at how people talk about disability. You really expect better?
d) Look at how adults-even/especially parents of disabled kids-treat adults with disabilities. You really expect better? Be a model, people.
It should go without saying that I feel for this kid, & I hate that this is still happening. These kids are monsters, & the adults who taught them that this is ok are also monsters.
Not gonna disagree with Kassiane at all. There’s a culture in society that says it’s okay to do this sort of thing… it’s just ‘high jinks’. but nobody’s asked the kid being treated in this way. but on the whole, whilst the kids are having their ‘high jinks’, the bullied one is trying to find out how to die. i know i was when it happened to me.
“…the bullied one is trying to find out how to die. i know i was when it happened to me.” Yes, so true. An NT raised in a loving family may not react so radically and it may “teach” that person something. However, a person on the spectrum* or an NT with an insecure situation [*or another type of neurology]may react in a more extreme way because a misunderstanding or an extreme understanding of why this bullying is happening. As a person on the spectrum I had this kind of reaction and each instance of bullying repeated emotionally many times via PSTD symptoms. To think of death for someone for this kind of treatment is not unusual. These grotesque “traditions” can be ended as we as humans learn more of brain science; just like bear and bullfights ended or torturing of cats ended.
Teasing among people who feel secure with their relationships is/should be playful for everyone involved. However, bullying is nothing like that and should not be confused with this normal benign behavior. On the other hand, recognizing kids on the spectrum should be as early as possible because we can misunderstand even benign teasing [as I did for years and years].