Sensitive Topic Mom says 11-year-old daughter with autism attacked by teens and adults

[AGXStarseed]

(Not written by me).

WARNING: Some of the video in the story (link at bottom of page) is graphic and might be disturbing to some viewers.

CLEVELAND, Ohio– The video is so violent, the victim’s mother has a hard time watching it.

“I was hurt. I was angry. I was upset. I was mad,” said Swann.

She said her young daughter has been bullied before, because the autism affects her ability to communicate normally.

“She mimics people,” said Joyce, “But she doesn’t mean no harm, because she doesn’t know how to really communicate with people period because of her autism.”

It’s unclear what led to the fight, but Joyce said the older girls have taunted her daughter in the past. She said she told her daughter to avoid them.

And then Saturday, the child was attacked not far from their home inside a Cuyahoga Metropolitan Housing Authority complex on East 66th Street in Cleveland.

The graphic video shows the 11-year-old being knocked to the ground and when her 9-year-old sister tries to intervene, she is also dragged across the crowd.

At one point, one of the older teens is on top of the 11-year-old and seems to be choking her while the teens’ adult mother is cursing and cheering.

The mother seems to repeatedly say “get her” and “beat her” up.

The video also seems to show the attackers’ mother and adult friend helping the older girl hurt Joyce’s daughter.

Joyce said, “She had her knee in her throat – held my daughter’s hands down so she could punch her repeatedly in her face.”

CMHA police are investigating the attack and say a number of charges could be filed against both the adults and teens seen in the video.

Joyce is also hoping for a transfer to another complex because she said she no longer feels safe at home.

SOURCE (With Video): Mom says 11-year-old daughter with autism attacked by adults, teens | fox8.com

 

[Ylva]

Lynching an eleven-year-old? Why are they not in jail?

 

[tachyon]

Very sad that people could behave like this.

 

[Harrison]

Humanity is a failed project, people are just evil.

 

[watersprite]

Agree with Harrison. At night when I cannot sleep, I count the centuries that Earth was blessed by Life Without Humans. Then, I pray that it will return to that state soon.

 

[Omega]

Because of the way I feel after reading this, the smartest comment I can make is no comment.

 

[AsheSkyler]

I feel an urge to hire a cop from Singapore...

 

[Tia Maria]

Lynching? I am not sure where that comment or analogy came from. This little girl & her sister were beat up (not lynched) by other kids with the encouragement of some related adults. Sickening. I hold these people, not all of humanity, responsible for their actions.

Sadly this happens pretty frequently in these communities - i.e.; government housing projects - kids fighting or being attacked, adults encouraging the battles, other kids filming & uploading their misdeeds to social media. That bravado works against them every time as they publish the evidence of their own crimes!

Arrests were already made.
Woman arrested, charged in connection with beating of girl with autism | fox8.com

The girls' Mom seems like a decent woman. I hope she & her family can be relocated somewhere safer. And too bad her girls could not attend a charter or private school, instead of the local inner city school, assuming the Mom cannot home school. By the way, the amount of taxpayer money per student spent at these urban schools is more than the tuition cost of a top notch private school. The public schools in these areas are just not well or efficiently run.

 

[tachyon]

Humanity is a failed project, people are just evil.

I would like to think there is still hope for our species, but after seeing that footage I'm uncertain.

I read recently that Stephen Hawking said that we should be spending way more on space research as he believes that we have no more than 1,000 years to escape Earth before the human race destroys itself. His thinking is that the qualities that got us to where we are now will probably bring about our own demise.

I would hate to think that we would be infecting the universe with the 'human qualities' displayed in that video

 

[AsheSkyler]

The girls' Mom seems like a decent woman. I hope she & her family can be relocated somewhere safer. And too bad her girls could not attend a charter or private school, instead of the local inner city school, assuming the Mom cannot home school.

If she's in the projects, there is a very high chance that she and her husband (if she has one, I don't remember reading about a dad/mate) are both working themselves into the ground to make ends meet. I'd be shocked if she could home school. I hope for her sake she can either have her kid moved to a better public school or they do find one of those cheaper private schools you mentioned. Private schools have their issues too of course, nothing is perfect. But hopefully better to go to.

 

[SignOfLazarus]

each of us have our limits in terms of what we can do to affect change

i'm really sad
and feel very helpless

 

[deathgrip]

My daughter is NT and i wont institutionalize her in the public school system.

i was this little girl. please imagine how this,makes me feel. the only difference was i was able to properly defend myself physically (call it autism strength or whatever) so when the kids figured it out it was then the teachers who were the bullies to me. No winning. i finally got put into alternative school.
my cousin who is also on the specteum, was treated like garbage by teachers also. The public is not to be trusted.

I dont care how many good humans there are out there, bluntly. to me, my cousin and someone like this eleven year old child, there will never be enough decent humans.

 

[SignOfLazarus]

I think many of us can probably relate and empathize. That is very unfourtunate.
It's one of the things that contributes to my personal feelings of helplessness at times but I can't speak for anyone else.

 

[paloftoon]

cyber school may be an option.

 

[Tia Maria]

If she's in the projects, there is a very high chance that she and her husband (if she has one, I don't remember reading about a dad/mate) are both working themselves into the ground to make ends meet. I'd be shocked if she could home school. I hope for her sake she can either have her kid moved to a better public school or they do find one of those cheaper private schools you mentioned. Private schools have their issues too of course, nothing is perfect. But hopefully better to go to.

I also doubt this Mom is capable of homeschooling, but just included it versus making the all out assumption. And most of the families in the 'projects' are fatherless, although it wasn't specified in this instance. The majority of parents regardless of economics are not really up to the task of homeschooling anyway because of the huge commitment & other obstacles.

Most private schools are not "cheap" but their tuition is often the same or less than what public schools receive in funding per student. So if those taxpayer funds spent per student were instead allocated directly to the student instead of to their 'district' (based on where they live), i.e.; a voucher system, the parents could apply to send their kids to the school of their choice. A good Mom like this one would be able to afford to send her daughters to a different & better school. Without a voucher system as described, I doubt this Mom (especially if a single parent) could afford even an inexpensive private school although many offer scholarships or financial aid. (Charter schools are a hybrid but typically operate like a private school.)

Anyone who hasn't seen the documentary "Waiting for Superman" should watch it.

More on the public school system:
Escaping 'Government' Schools by John Stossel on Creators.com - A Syndicate Of Talent

As paloftoon mentioned, online schools are another really good alternative for some kids. It's included as a public school option in some areas, & private pay (requiring tuition) in others.

Neither charter or private schools are perfect, but they usually can limit or control bullying far easier than large public or inner city schools, & the level of accountability for administration & teachers is very high. Then factor in that most parents of kids at these schools are very invested in their children's education & well being, so even just a phone call home is effective.

I too feel VERY BADLY for these two little girls & their Mom. I hope the kids & adults involved are adequately punished. It is shocking & terrible that adults would behave this way but there are many bad (& also stupid) people in the world. I just believe there is more good than bad overall.

To anyone posting here who was bullied or attacked by other kids growing up, I truly hope you can one day fully heal from all the trauma & abuse you endured. Try not to let bullies from your past ruin your today.

 

[SASTrooper]

I'm going to thought my thought into this matter as I had this in high school and it made who I'm to day, I was bit of gibbering idiot most days I didn't know. But felt that I was different and the other had changed around like some took the mask from off my head as people even teachers thought I was something of an oddity, it was made worse when one has to take a test to see what level one is for math and English.

Something that can make one feel like there going back then forward and I was bullied not to the extent that this poor girl was but most days I did say to my mother that I was upset and felt dark, one thing that was extreme is that one girl did get pissed off with some little and she threaten my life, verbally and I ran home even after the teacher came after me telling me to get back to school. I got home and went to my room to get something my bb gun. At the time I thought if some want to threaten someone just do it don't joke around as it where, thankfully my mother and I talked about it and was taken out of that school into on that more for people with disabilities.

It made a better person as feel with other with more divers condition's as it where, but at the same time I felt that I was a head of my time dew my aspergers. Thing did get some what better in college but now I feel that in life where some want to do something or say something, one is met with people and obstacles that make feel the same as I did in high school.

As telling some that you want to work in tv and film they say nothing but negative thing and yet I want to it. My qwestion if we are free why impression us to are minds ? I hope that one day I can do what I want to do be with who I want to be with and I hope the world is a better place for girl in this story as we need to do something now.

(sorry if this off topic or nonsense )

 

[AsheSkyler]

My daughter is NT and i wont institutionalize her in the public school system.

i was this little girl. please imagine how this,makes me feel. the only difference was i was able to properly defend myself physically (call it autism strength or whatever) so when the kids figured it out it was then the teachers who were the bullies to me. No winning. i finally got put into alternative school.
my cousin who is also on the specteum, was treated like garbage by teachers also. The public is not to be trusted.

I dont care how many good humans there are out there, bluntly. to me, my cousin and someone like this eleven year old child, there will never be enough decent humans.

That's the only thing that saved my bacon too, with the same results. The kids learned I wasn't afraid to fight back and didn't pick on me as much as others, and then I had all the associated adults getting on to me instead of telling the little twerps to behave themselves in the first place.

Most private schools are not "cheap" but their tuition is often the same or less than what public schools receive in funding per student. So if those taxpayer funds spent per student were instead allocated directly to the student instead of to their 'district' (based on where they live), i.e.; a voucher system, the parents could apply to send their kids to the school of their choice. A good Mom like this one would be able to afford to send her daughters to a different & better school. Without a voucher system as described, I doubt this Mom (especially if a single parent) could afford even an inexpensive private school although many offer scholarships or financial aid. (Charter schools are a hybrid but typically operate like a private school.)

Well, that will never happen. I've never seen a politician ever use their influence for something as constructive and useful as that.
A voucher system would be much, much better. They already have similar systems in place for food and insurance, why can't they just bump it up to schools as well? Bah... Although given their ineptitude with food and insurance, I'd be almost afraid to see what horrors they'd put those families through. Why can't we have useful government that actually gets crap done?

 

[GoofKing]

Humanity is a failed project, people are just evil.

More like evil spineless pieces of filth but I agree ... ...

 

[Hurting89]

Those housing projects are rough. The kids and teens there are impoverished and angry and with little outlet to vent their frustration so they usually go after the weakest person.

I lived in a housing condominium project (or government housing as we call it here in Canada) until I was 12 and there was lots of behaviour like this unfortunately

 

[paloftoon]

. . .

As paloftoon mentioned, online schools are another really good alternative for some kids. It's included as a public school option in some areas, & private pay (requiring tuition) in others.

Neither charter or private schools are perfect, but they usually can limit or control bullying far easier than large public or inner city schools, & the level of accountability for administration & teachers is very high. Then factor in that most parents of kids at these schools are very invested in their children's education & well being, so even just a phone call home is effective.

. . .

Public schools that offer "cyber schooling" does not compare to most actual cyber schools that hire full time teachers. Cyber schools that hire full time teachers, these teachers are available to work in live sessions, in many cases on a regular basis 5 days a week. There does not seem to be a true cyber offering at public schools so far. They get their curriculum from an online provider with part time people, and the help those students could receive can only come from people they made connections with previously and not from the instructor of the course themselves that much most likely.