SHE SHOULD BE IN HIS ARMS

By Dr. Ron Unruh

Does the Ministry of Children and Family Development understand Autism?

Whatever informed expertise there is within MCFD, it has not been communicated to front line workers and their supervisors who are making unreasonable decisions about autistic children.

Taking a child away from an attendant and proficient father as MCFD have done with 9 year old Ayn was pointless, reactionary, excessive and injurious. The adjectives are entirely appropriate for this stupid social worker action.

Instead of the Ministry providing practical, actionable information and financial assistance and affirming support to parents like Derek Hoare, the Ministry disciplines with severity when an autistic child does what comes naturally – wanders. And the manner by which the Ministry manages that tendency consists of seizing the girl and pumping drugs into her. The enormity of this offense defies expression with words. For the first eighteen days of her captivity she has daily wept. A nine year old girl should not be subjected to that. That is not in her best interests. If she cried every day while in the care of her dad and the Ministry heard about that, it would assume abuse or neglect. The reading public of this blog and of other news sources that carry the story readily associate the Ministry’s actions as abuse of their mandate. Citizens should be able to assume that Ministry personnel are intelligent, copiously prepared and fully informed about autism before they interfere with parental care of autistic children who are loved and cherished within their families. We are regularly supplied with reasons for disbelieving that. Not least of which is this distasteful harm done to a sweet girl who must now cling to a photograph of her dad holding her in his arms.

She should be in his arms.

Hon. Mary McNeil and Hon. Christy Clark, you must give attention to this case certainly, but beyond this single case, to the conduct of this Ministry challenged with responsibility for which it appears at so many levels to be incapable of satisfying. You have to turn this around for the sake of the people who have elected you to serve and to help us.

Please contact Derek Hoare directly at
Derek Hoare iconoclast_ensues@yahoo.com 904-HELP AYN 904-435-7296