Autism Cliff makes Fiscal Cliff look like a curb

Kids With Autism 'Fall Off Cliff' When They Turn 21 - ABC News

"Autism is part of who we are as a society," said Buck, 30. "Across the country, young adults who turn 21 are pushed out of the school system. They often end up with nowhere to go; they simply disappear from productive society. This is what educators call 'falling off the cliff.'"

Whole Foods to Sister of Man with Autism: Don't come back unless you have him on a leash!

Woman's outrage after 'Whole Foods security guard told her to put her autistic brother on a LEASH for stealing food' | Mail Online

An autistic man who was caught eating food without paying at a Wisconsin Whole Foods Market was asked to leave and not come back unless he's on a leash, according to his outraged family.

On January 2, Emily Goldstein took her brother, Michael, shopping at the Whole Foods supermarket on North Avenue in Milwaukee.

The 26-year-old man suffers from autism, which makes it difficult for him to communicate, so when he was confronted by security guards after snatching  some hot food from a tray, he could not explain himself.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2260229/Womans-outrage-Whole-Foods-security-guard-told-autistic-brother-LEASH-stealing-food.html#ixzz2HbcBYN00
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Milan prosecutor wants jail terms upheld for Google autism video - chicagotribune.com

Milan prosecutor wants jail terms upheld for Google autism video - chicagotribune.com: "MILAN (Reuters) - An Italy prosecutor has asked an appeals court to uphold jail sentences for three Google executives charged with violating the privacy of an Italian boy with autism by letting a video of him being bullied be posted on the site in 2006.

"Not only has the privacy of minors been violated but lessons of cruelty have been given to 5,500 visitors," Milan prosecutor Laura Bertole Viale said on Tuesday at the appeals hearing."

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China: Video of 4 year old girl with autism beaten provokes Internet anger across globe

This child was beaten into a coma by female assistant.

Video of autistic child being beaten provokes Internet outrage - CNN.com
A closed-circuit television clip, posted and shared on Chinese social media and reported by the local press this week, has triggered sympathy and outrage here in China. 

The footage purportedly shows a four-year-old girl with autism being manhandled and beaten by a female assistant at a children's rehabilitation center in the southern city of Guangzhou. 

The girl apparently collapsed and lost consciousness as other adults looked on passively. She was rushed to the hospital for emergency treatment, Chinese media reports said.Chine

WARNING: GRAPHIC

Pathetic: 3 Year-Old Autistic Boy, Soiled, Hungry and Traumatized After 5-Hour Bus Ride Home From School (Bergen Beach, Brooklyn)

Three-Year-Old Autistic Boy, Soiled, Hungry and Traumatized After 5-Hour Bus Ride Home From School | Strollerderby

Last week on the first day of school, three-year-old Levi Vidal from Bergen Beach, Brooklyn who suffers from autism had to endure a five-hour ride home from his school in Manhattan and finally arrived home distraught in a soiled diaper. His mother Serena, was naturally irate, reports the NY Daily News: 

More @ http://blogs.babble.com/strollerderby/2012/09/11/three-year-old-autistic-boy-soiled-hungry-and-traumatized-after-5-hour-bus-ride-home-from-school/

LESS THAN SHOCKING NEWS OF THE DAY: 1/2 of Kids with Autism Bullied

Almost half of kids with autism are bullied, study shows - HealthPop - CBS News

(CBS News) Almost half of adolescents with an autism spectrum disorder have been the victims of bullying, according to a new study. 

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a variety of different neurodevelopmental disorders that often cause social impairments, communication difficulties and restricted, repetitive, and stereotyped patterns of behavior, according to the National Institutes of Health. Social interaction is especially difficult for people diagnosed with the disorder. About 1 out of 88 children by the age of 8 will have an ASD, with males four times more likely to have autism than females.

Denied heart transplant because of Autism

After adult autistic son denied heart transplant, Pennsylvania woman seeks to reverse decision - The Washington Post

PHILADELPHIA — A Pennsylvania woman whose autistic adult son was not recommended for a heart transplant said she wants to bring more attention to the decision-making process so that those with ailments or disabilities are not passed over without careful consideration.
Karen Corby said Thursday that her son, Paul, now 23, was denied a heart transplant from the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania last summer over what it said were concerns about his “psychiatric issues” and “autism,” among other factors.

Want to commit suicide because of my son's autism ...

Autism Mom Blog: Want to commit suicide because of my son's autismAutism Mom Blog

The title of this post, “Want to commit suicide because of my son’s autism” is a keyword search that led someone to my blog this morning.  My heart dropped when I saw this.  The person did not leave a comment, I wish she had.  (I don’t know if it was a he or she, but I’m going to use she to make writing this easier).  The thought that someone is thinking about doing this is scary.  I pray that the commit suicide search on the internet is her way of reaching out for some kind of help.  I know how isolating having a child with autism can be.  For some, reaching out online is the only thing they can do.  This post is a message to that person.

Autism Dad | Joe Scarborough, Meet Autism Backlash

Joe Scarborough, Meet Autism Backlash

Even though Joe Scarborough has a child on the autism spectrum, he is in for a can full of holy whoop ass over the statements he made today.  Disclaimer: I like, Joe.  I think Joe should have run for president.  I am not sure why he didn’t despite a lot of conjecture.  That said, Joe will be promptly back-tracking and reexplaining what he meant to say by the time you read this post.

Stormy Rich, Florida High School Student, Barred From School Bus After Reporting Bullying Of Special Needs Student

Stormy Rich, Florida High School Student, Barred From School Bus After Reporting Bullying Of Special Needs Student

Stormy Rich, an 18-year-old Florida student, says she was punished after reporting bullying of a special needs student on a school bus, and standing up to those bullies when the school didn't take action. 

Rich, an Umatilla High School student, was riding on a middle school bus because she had earned enough credits to avoid a first-period class, getting to school later by taking the bus for the neighboring middle school, the Daily Commercial reports. 

But one girl on the bus -- a special needs student -- was regularly being picked on by her peers, but couldn't comprehend what was being done to her.

Autistic boy fatally struck on U.S. 60 - News from The Arizona Republic

Autistic boy fatally struck on U.S. 60 - News from The Arizona Republic:

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AUTISM DADDY: Where Will He Live When We're Gone? The question many autism parents are afraid to ask...

AUTISM DADDY: Where Will He Live When We're Gone? The question many autism parents are afraid to ask...

Ok, I've had a blog post rolling around in my head for a few weeks and I keep saying... I'm gonna write it some day soon...but here's the gist...

What happens with our kids with severe ASD after mom & dad are gone?
Group home?

More @ http://autism-daddy.blogspot.com/2012/05/toughest-question-for-parents-of-kids-w.html

Autism Abuse: Sign Human Rights Petition - Cherry Hill School District: Fire Kelly Altenburg | Change.org

Human Rights Petition: Cherry Hill School District: Fire Kelly Altenburg | Change.org

When Stuart Chaifetz sent his 10-year-old son to New Jersey's Horace Mann Elementary School wearing a hidden audio recorder, he couldn't have predicted what he would uncover.
Akian, who has Autism, returned with a tape containing hours of apparent verbal and emotional abuse from his classroom aide and teacher -- whom Chaifetz identifies as "Jodi" and "Kelly" -- a recording which his father later published on YouTube. 

WATCH VIDEO HERE:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tfkscHt96R0 

At various points in the audio recording, you hear the 10-year-old, almost fully non-communicative autistic boy being told to "shut your mouth" and that he "is such a bastard."
And as if that weren't bad enough, his teachers also talk about drinking wine and tell Akian Chaifetz that he won't be seeing his father anytime soon, to which the youngster responds by sounding as if he is going to burst into tears with disappointment and fear.
After Stuart Chaifetz showed the audio recording to school administrators, one aide was fired, but at least two other adults can be heard on the tape, and that is why Chaifetz is taking his case public. He has stated ""To this end, I seek a full and public apology from all those adults who were in my son's class for what they did to him," writes on his website. "It is also far past time that these issues are allowed to be hidden from public view."
**************************************************************************************
No teacher who bullies a child, especially one with special needs, should be allowed to keep their job in the field. With all the evidence against Kelly Altenburg, this petition seeks either her resignment or the termination of any position at Cherry Hill Schools.
**************************************************************************************
Contact Cherry Hill Schools here:
http://www.cherryhill.k12.nj.us/contact/

SIGN PETITION HERE!!!

School Doesn't Fire Accused Autism Abuser

Per earlier post Stuart Chaifetz, Father, Puts Wire On Son With Autism, Records Verbal Abuse From Teachers , contact this school and express your opinion of them keeping accused autism abusing teacher caught on tape ...

Horace Mann Elementary School

Principal: Shilpa Dalal (sdalal@chclc.org)
150 Walt Whitman 
 Cherry Hill, NJ 08003 
 Ph: (856) 428-1144 
 Fax: (856) 428-7168


Kelly Altenburg looks to have been removed from the school's website faculty and staff page, but here's an archived copy from archive.org from last November.   

Stuart Chaifetz, Autism Dad, Sends Son to School with Wire, Records Verbal Abuse by Teachers

Stuart Chaifetz, Father, Puts Wire On Son With Autism, Records Verbal Abuse From Teachers (VIDEO)

When Stuart Chaifetz sent his 10-year-old son to New Jersey's Horace Mann Elementary School wearing a wire, he couldn't have predicted the audio he would uncover. 

The wiring came as a reaction to accusations from the school that his son Akian was having "violent outbursts,"including hitting his teacher and teacher's aide -- claims that Chaifetz says are simply against his son's "sweet and non-violent" nature. 

To Chaifetz's shock, Akian, a student with Autism, returned with a tape containing hours of verbal and emotional abuse from his classroom aide and teacher, which the father documented and published in an emotional YouTube video. 

More @ http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/04/23/stuart-chaifetz-father-wire-son-records-teacher-abuse_n_1447330.html

Another Autism Murder Suicide: Mom killed 22-year-old autistic son, then herself

Sunnyvale police: Mother killed 22-year-old autistic son, then herself - Inside Bay Area

A Sunnyvale mother shot and killed her 22-year-old autistic son in his bedroom, then turned the gun on herself, according to police.

Department of Public Safety Capt. Dave Verbrugge said Wednesday that the pair were found about 7:45 p.m. Tuesday in a home in the 800 block of Nectarine Ave.

He did not disclose their names or a possible motive.

...

But one neighbor said that Hodgins told her several times in the last few months that her son was getting increasingly harder to handle, and that she couldn't find a new program to take him.

"She just couldn't do it any more -- take care of him anymore''' said Jacquie Jauch. "She was just tired and very lonely."

Jauch said that Hodgins pleaded with her: "Please help me find a program. I need somewhere to put him. I need a rest."

Depressing News of the Day: Kids with Disabilities Friendless

Special needs disability parenting BLOOM: Half of Canadian kids with disabilities friendless: ""The problem is most serious for boys – who tend to have far more developmental disabilities and fewer social skills – and it gets worse with age," Picard writes. In childhood, efforts are made, but by the time kids hit age 10 or so, when cliques and social circles form outside of parental control, ostracization and isolation is near complete.""

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