Tag Archives: special needs bullying

Coulter defense of her “retard” comment reveals her true colors

Posted on by

Ann Coulter (Photo credit: Huffington Post)

Following the third debate between President Obama and his Republican opponent Mitt Romney, Ann Coulter a news “personality,” tweeted out, ““I highly approve of Romney’s decision to be kind and gentle to the retard”, referring to President Obama. Immediately and justifiably a large number of people began to call Coulter out for her offensive word choice, which upset people for two main reasons: 1) that she finds it okay to use such a demeaning term to the mentally disabled, and 2) that she would feel it is okay to speak about an elected president of the United States in such a manner. Coulter’s defense of her “retard” comment reveals her true colors.

My biggest problem with Ann Coulter is what her actions show about her character. I do not follow Ann Coulter so maybe my thoughts are a statement of the obvious to people who do, but through this controversy, my perception of Ms. Coulter is that she is a bully, the worst kind of bully. The type of person who targets those who least have the ability to protect themselves. Bullying of special needs children is a huge problem in our world. In my special education law practice, I work with developmentally disabled children every day. Among the many challenges they must face, one particularly common and galling one is bullying. Whether it is name calling or physical assaults, special needs children are far more likely to be bullied than typical school children.

So, when Ann Coulter chooses to use a word that Peirs Morgan correctly noted was the equivalent of the “N” word to black Americans, she intentionally choose a word that she must know brings pain to a great many people who simply do not deserve it. This begs the question of why, what is her motive for doing this? Well, it appears for the basest of reasons, to draw attention to herself because she has a new book being released, Mugged: Racial Demagoguery from the Seventies to Obama. According to David Phillips,

When Coulter makes her outlandish and offensive comments, more often than not, she has a new book that she wants to promote.

Based on this, it is safe to assume that so long as Ms. Coulter profits through increased book sales, she does not care upon whom she needs to step on to get them. Even her defense of her comments was off-putting. First, she attacked liberals who had made offensive comments about the disabled, mentioning Obama’s Special Olympics” comment concerning bowling and also Al Gore’s comment concerning right wingers having an “extra chromosome.” (meaning have Down’s Syndrome) There are some huge differences between these comments and hers. First, both President Obama and Al Gore apologized for their comments rather than going on the offensive. Second, neither of them made the comments for financial gain, as Ms. Coulter appears to be doing.

Finally, her defense that “retard” is a synonym for loser just does not hold water. According to Dictionary.com, the N word means “a victim of prejudice similar to that suffered by blacks.” I’m hard pressed to believe that Ann Coulter would tweet the N word and try to defend herself by saying that she felt the person she was tweeting about was a victim of prejudice.

Ann Coulter is receiving a great deal of blow back for her tweet. My hope is that if she receives enough, she may actually recognize the error in her ways. Being cynical though, I can say an apology coming out after her comments have gotten her on as many talk shows as possible promoting her new book would be worse than worthless.

If you would like to watch an eloquent rebuttal to Ann Coulter’s comments given by John Franklin, a disabled individual, click here.

Is “cyberbaiting” a real trend that should concern teachers?

Posted on by

Out-of-control classroom

Norton Online Family Reports documents what some consider to be an alarming trend in education: “cyberbaiting.” This is when a student or group of students deliberately provoke a teacher in an attempt to get the person to lose control. If successful, a student then secretly videos the outburst using their cell phone and posts the humiliating display on social media sites. Read my thought on this issue here.

Some suggestions for IEP goals when your child is bullied

Posted on by

I am currently in the process of writing an ebook on bullying. This explains the sudden focus of my blog almost exclusively on bullying issues. This modified portion of my book focuses on IEP goals parents should consider if their child is experiencing bullying at school. As we all know by now, special needs children are bullied 2 to 3 times more frequently than their typical peers. As I have mentioned in previous articles, one of the first steps that the parent of a special needs child should take is to request an IEP meeting.

The following are some IEP goal areas and interventions that can directly or indirectly help address student bullying and should be considered at that meeting.

  • Teach to whom the child should report: A child who is experiencing bullying should be provided with a contact person at the school to whom they are to report any further bullying. A goal should be included that the child can identify the person to whom they are to report bullying. Simply possessing the knowledge that there is someone on campus charged with protecting them if bullying occurs can really increase your child’s feeling of personal safety and empowerment on campus.
  • Communicate the difference between tattling and reporting: A goal can be implemented that teaches your child the difference between tattling (bad) and reporting (good). Tattling is telling on someone for the sole person of getting someone in trouble. Reporting is the disclosure of information for the purpose of preventing danger to yourself or someone else. Students should understand that when they are bullied, telling an adult is not tattling but is reporting and necessary.
  • Help other children understand: A goal for the school or class can be implemented that teaches children about a particular disability or need for assistive technology. Children who understand why children are “different” are more likely to be understanding of that difference.
  • Increase self-knowledge: It is important for children to understand their own disability. Self-awareness can increase self-esteem as children learn to appreciate what makes them different and recognizing the work they are doing to be successful. In addition, understanding their own disability will also increase their awareness of how their disability can work for or against them in the social situations they encounter.
  • Teach your child to say “No”: Saying “No!” and meaning it is an important lesson for all children. Children need to be taught how to assertively advocate for themselves when someone is trying to hurt them.
  • Encourage friendship skills: Children who are bullied are more likely to be loners. The kids on the playground who are always off playing by themselves. By teaching your child the values of friendship, and the rules of friendship, they are more likely to develop positive friendships at school and be less likely to become the targets of bullies.
  • Be a part of a social skills group: In social skills groups, children receive invaluable feedback from their peers about their social skills. This occurs in a positive way, rather than the usually harsh ways that kids teach other kids that their behavior is not in line with the norm. Further, as they learn these skills, the friendships discussed above are more likely to develop.
  • Increase pragmatic skills: Pragmatics is about the unspoken rules of social language. Learning to take turns in speaking, paying attention the listener’s body language, speaking differently to different people are all examples of pragmatics. A poor understanding of pragmatics can be a cause of bullying.
  • Allow early exit from class: Where children change classes during the day, a way to reduce the risk of bullying is to allow your child to leave a couple of minutes early so that they can get to their next class without having to interact with all the general education population.
  • Have an aide shadow your child: In more severe situations a parent can request an aide shadow the student when they are out of the classroom. It may even be appropriate to request a one-on-one aide so that the child is never on campus and unsupervised.
  • Consider a change of placement: Finally, a change of placement may even be in order. With regard to this specific issue, the court decisions in this area conflict. For a particularly thoughtful and well-written decision in which it was held a child was denied FAPE (a free and appropriate public education), read “Federal Judge Holds Bullied Special Education Student Denied FAPE.”

Also, I welcome additional suggestions. Please email me at gregorybranch@edrightsadvocate.com.

If your child is experiencing bullying at school, please contact my office for a consultation. You may use the email address above or call me at (714) 856-1166.

www.edrightsadvocate.com