Article: Is Disney Dissing the Disabled?

[OurBigTrip]

Riding a ride multiple times would fall under the definition of perseverative behavior which is one of the symptoms of autism usually. This may not manifest itself with rides at an amusement park but sometimes it does.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Perseveration

They still don't NEED to ride multiple times, they WANT to ride multiple times.

Big difference.

 

[Robbi]

Like I said, parents throwing hissy fits.

If you saw the video of Matt Asner backpedaling and saying that Autism Speaks had nothing to do with DAS as it was originally announced, you would see that Autism Speaks was NOT on board with DAS.

It was only after all the "but my kid can't wait and has to ride 10 times" brigade started whining that Disney responded with the new policy.

How exactly did you come by this information? DO you have an in with the DLR and WDW higher ups?

 

[OurBigTrip]

How exactly did you come by this information? DO you have an in with the DLR and WDW higher ups?

It's not rocket science - watch the video and see for the Matt Asner's backpedaling for yourself. Then see that the changes to the policy were just communicated to the whiners via Autism Speaks a couple of days ago.

 

[karice2]

Since people have asked how people cope when a person has special requirements. I will attempt to answer.

Caveat, I don't have a kid, I have a dad with brain damage from a stroke. I know, not as bad as Autism but he does have a heart that only works at 13%so that should tip it a bit. This is information from when his stroke was fairly new.

1. Two of his prescriptions have sun warnings on them. He usually has to wear long sleeve t-shirts and one of those jungle hats to cover his neck.

2. He can't fully talk so we have to have business cards in his wallet with name and contact info so people will know how to reach us. We still have to do this. His speech is about 35% from what it was. He has a Masters in Social Work so this is huge.

3. He has to practice walking and building stamina before we go. We also kept a wheelchair in the back of the car because he couldn't stand for long periods of time. We rented an ECV while in Florida but didn't even use the alternate entrance. Mom didn't like rides so she would sit in it while we were in line.

4. Stroke Patients have melt downs. Big ones with limited ability to speak and frustration. We would take him aside and play 20 questions until we could figure out what the issue is by using a tablet with emoticons, food items, and places he frequented.

5. Feeding Tube - He couldn't swallow so we had to feed him all his meals through a tube in his stomach. We just set aside time to feed him. He was recovering from liver issues so needed to be fed every 5 hours. Just took him to a quiet corner, shook up food and let it drip in.

6. hydration - had to watch him drink everything since there are choking and pneumonia risk. Always carried a straw and made sure I held can so that he couldnt take in too much.

7. Audible on phone ear piece- If we had to wait anywhere would play a audible book to help build vocabulary back and keep him occupied.

That is all I got for now but I am Daddy's Unicorn Snowflake and my greatest joy is seeing his recovery.

 

[sharadoc]

Now you people are bullies. You are poking and kicking and getting people to react and fight back then you stand together in your little gang and smirk and high five each other. You are disgusting. How dare you beat up on people trying to cope on a daily basis.

I think the "even Helen KELLER" COMMENT DID IT FOR ME. AND THE unicorn Snowflake. Thread is reported and I can only hope that my fellow parents of kids with Autism can just get out and leave the bullies to their own pathetic shallow and close-minded existence.

 

[sbelyo]

Now you people are bullies. You are poking and kicking and getting people to react and fight back then you stand together in your little gang and smirk and high five each other. You are disgusting. How dare you beat up on people trying to cope on a daily basis.

I think the "even Helen KELLER" COMMENT DID IT FOR ME. AND THE unicorn Snowflake. Thread is reported and I can only hope that my fellow parents of kids with Autism can just get out and leave the bullies to their own pathetic shallow and close-minded existence.

AMEN to that

One little spark

P.S. Midway's quote was 6 posts in. She quoted NO ONE that I can see in this thread to THAT POINT

I'll tell you this it's most un-disney

 

[Vidia2]

They still don't NEED to ride multiple times, they WANT to ride multiple times.

Big difference.

This type of perseverative behavior is by definition a part of the disability of autism. Not a want. No one wants this, believe me. While my family doesn't have to deal with this as a ride issue, we deal with it day in and day out with other issues. The same obsessions go on for months, sometimes years.

If Disney didn't see this as being a part of the disability, they would not allow for it.

Really, who would want to ride these rides over and over unless they had an obsession that they couldn't control.

You're confusing something that someone does for enjoyment with something that someone does because if they didn't it would cause extreme distress because of a disability.

 

[OurBigTrip]

Really, who would want to ride these rides over and over unless they had an obsession that they couldn't control.

You're confusing something that someone does for enjoyment with something that someone does because if they didn't it would cause extreme distress because of a disability.

Any kid that loves a ride is going to want to ride it over and over and over and be distressed when they can't do it. That doesn't mean they should be permitted to do it.

 

[camandjacksmom]

Now you people are bullies. You are poking and kicking and getting people to react and fight back then you stand together in your little gang and smirk and high five each other. You are disgusting. How dare you beat up on people trying to cope on a daily basis.

I think the "even Helen KELLER" COMMENT DID IT FOR ME. AND THE unicorn Snowflake. Thread is reported and I can only hope that my fellow parents of kids with Autism can just get out and leave the bullies to their own pathetic shallow and close-minded existence.

Calling people disgusting and ignorant is no better.

 

[OurBigTrip]

Now you people are bullies. You are poking and kicking and getting people to react and fight back then you stand together in your little gang and smirk and high five each other. You are disgusting. How dare you beat up on people trying to cope on a daily basis.

I think the "even Helen KELLER" COMMENT DID IT FOR ME. AND THE unicorn Snowflake. Thread is reported and I can only hope that my fellow parents of kids with Autism can just get out and leave the bullies to their own pathetic shallow and close-minded existence.

I'm sorry that you're unhappy that people don't think you should be permitted the run of the park at the expense of others.

No one is bullying anyone, although given the attempts to guilt people over to your way of thinking, I can see where you might believe that.

 

[Objectivity]

Any kid that loves a ride is going to want to ride it over and over and over and be distressed when they can't do it. That doesn't mean they should be permitted to do it.

You're being told by people who know far more about Autism than you do that your uninformed opinion is incorrect. They're attempting to politely educate you and you're response is to basically say, "My opinion is better than decades of medical research. I prefer ignorance to education."

 

[sbelyo]

I'm sorry that you're unhappy that people don't think you should be permitted the run of the park at the expense of others.

No one is bullying anyone, although given the attempts to guilt people over to your way of thinking, I can see where you might believe that.

Think about what you're typing.... no person here wants the run of the parks. THINK about that for just ONE second

 

[mara512]

Now you people are bullies. You are poking and kicking and getting people to react and fight back then you stand together in your little gang and smirk and high five each other. You are disgusting. How dare you beat up on people trying to cope on a daily basis. I think the "even Helen KELLER" COMMENT DID IT FOR ME. AND THE unicorn Snowflake. Thread is reported and I can only hope that my fellow parents of kids with Autism can just get out and leave the bullies to their own pathetic shallow and close-minded existence.

Helen Keller comment I agree completely inappropriate. The unicorn snowflake after being explained I really don't think was meant negatively or to hurt anyone. Sadly until you have a child or parent with a disability they just won't understand and trying to explain it won't make a difference. There just isn't anyway to explain it.

 

[OurBigTrip]

You're being told by people who know far more about Autism than you do that your uninformed opinion is incorrect. They're attempting to politely educate you and you're response is to basically say, "My opinion is better than decades of medical research. I prefer ignorance to education."

If the child isn't going to suffer physical harm by not riding, that child doesn't need to ride, period. "Extreme distress" is not physical harm.

 

[OurBigTrip]

Think about what you're typing.... no person here wants the run of the parks. THINK about that for just ONE second

Unlimited front of the line access and unlimited ride looping = run of the parks.

 

[SueM in MN]

Like I said, parents throwing hissy fits.

If you saw the video of Matt Asner backpedaling and saying that Autism Speaks had nothing to do with DAS as it was originally announced, you would see that Autism Speaks was NOT on board with DAS.

It was only after all the "but my kid can't wait and has to ride 10 times" brigade started whining that Disney responded with the new policy.

Autism Speaks is trying to distance themselves, but were involved in giving advise - and from what they posted on their Facebook page and website, quite a bit:

Autism Speaks had this status on their Facebook page on Sept. 20th (my bold):

"Status Update
By Autism Speaks
There has been some misinformation involving Disneyland's Guest Assistance Card program. Autism Speaks has been working with Disney. We'll have updates."
(I tried to post a link, but there are no links to individual Facebook posts. You can scroll down their Facebook page and find it though)
Since then there have been no updates about the Guest Assistance Card Program.

I do know that after that post, there were many negative responses from parents, asking how could Autism Speaks worked with Disney and have come up with the plan that was then in the news from MiceChat. Many said they would no longer support Autism Speaks because they wanted GACs not to end.

An article on yahoo news on Monday, September 23, quoted a spokesperson for Autism Speaks (my bold):
“Disney reached out to us,” Autism Speaks spokesperson Michael Rosen told Yahoo Shine. “A large segment of our population with autism has sensory issues, so having patience to wait on noisy lines is a really hard thing.”

When Rosen has taken his own son, who has autism, to Disney World, for example, “he would start crying and screaming when we stood on a line, because he didn’t realize that in 25 minutes he would go on a ride. He had no idea why he was standing on a line, and that really takes away from the fun.”

Rosen said Autism Speaks has been urging parents concerned about the change to be patient and wait for the official release of the new policy from Disney. “We worked with them so they would make it as comfortable an experience as possible for our community,” he said.
Link to article:
http://shine.yahoo.com/parenting/di...abled--wait-in-line-161946185.html?nopharma=1

The video with Matt Asner had an air date of September 26.

So, on Sept. 20 and 23, Autism Speaks was saying they were involved with the changes, but all of a sudden, in the interview on Sept. 26, the Autism Speaks spokesperson being interviewed knew nothing about any changes at all and only worked on the guidebooks.
He didn't actually say that Disney ignored their comments, just that they were asked some questions, they gave their answers - basically "that won't work...that won't work....that won't work."
He didn't know what was done with the answers they have to Disney (I would maintain that saying "that won't work" , but not giving any advice or suggestions on what might work is not helpful - if someone reaches out to you for assistance, you should at least try to give some helpful input.

My personal guess - Autism Speaks did work with Disney, but did not expect the outcry in response to the article (and large numbers of people who said they were pulling support from Autism Speaks). So, (IMHO) they tried to distance themselves from any involvement at all (other than the Guidebook, which they expect to be positive).

 

[jacquelinemc]

I've been a teacher in Newtown, CT for 18 years, and also have two children with autism. One of the things I frequently say to my students is that fair doesn't mean everyone gets the same thing, fair means everyone gets what they need. Imagine what "equal" would look like in a typical classroom...the kids above grade level would be bored because they already mastered the curriculum, the at-risk children struggle because they don't have the tools to be successful, and the few "typical" children get what they need. This "equal" treatment would be a huge disservice to the bulk of the children. Fair would mean differentiating instruction so that each and every child gets what they need at their level. This may not be that different. In my case, fair would be waiting in the regular queue with my high-functioning daughter for Enchanted Tales with Belle, while my more affected son gets his sensory needs met using the GAC to ride Astro Orbiter. He wants to ride it, because it does fulfill a need...some sensory experience I can't quite understand that is satisfied both by the vertical elevator ride and the spinning cars. We won't ride it repeatedly, but we will revisit it over and over over the week. And we won't be gloating...we will be exhaling. With relief. With gratitude. Someone understands. Maybe fair does mean everyone gets what they need. I truly want that for every child,

 

[SueM in MN]

There were no further updates on the Autism Speaks Facebook page after the one where they said they had been working with Disney and would have further updates - it's completely ignored like it never happened.

Autism Speaks had a story on their website that said:
"Autism Speaks worked with the Disney team to come up with a comprehensive plan that protected our families ability to enjoy their visits to Disney parks.

The goal was for our autism families to be provided with every opportunity to have a day at Disney Parks that maximizes their enjoyment and reduces stressful situations."

That is no longer anywhere to be found on the Autism Speaks website or Facebook page, but it still shows up if you do a search for Disney on the website, as this picture shows.

Link to larger:
http://photopost.wdwinfo.com/data/1332/medium/image89.jpg

But, if you click that first link, it's been replaced with a letter from a Meg Crofton, Disney's President about the changes.
http://www.autismspeaks.org/news/news-item/disney-president-speaks-out-about-changes

So, Autism Speaks appears to be working hard to distance themselves from their involvement with the DAS.

 

[Vidia2]

Any kid that loves a ride is going to want to ride it over and over and over and be distressed when they can't do it. That doesn't mean they should be permitted to do it.

If a kid loves a ride so much that they want to ride it over and over and over and are distressed when they can't do it, they should be tested for autism, especially if they also have severe communications/language delays and other cognitive issues.

 

[Objectivity]

If the child isn't going to suffer physical harm by not riding, that child doesn't need to ride, period. "Extreme distress" is not physical harm.

From what school did you receive your medical degree?

If that's your opinion, then that's your opinion. But it's uninformed and you've basically said you're unwilling to become better educated. That's the part I don't understand, the desire to not learn more about the world and the people around you.