It is Monday afternoon in elementary school recess. Tom pushes his wheelchair up to a group of students and asks if he can play with them. Upon hearing this, they look at Tom incredulously before bursting into laughter. According to Pacer's National Bullying Prevention Center, 60% of students with special needs report being bullied regularly. This means that more than 4 million students feel like they are left out by their peers. Bullying has detrimental effects on children with special needs and may lead them to think that their disability defines them. This is simply not acceptable for any child, and we must take action right away.
To reduce and eliminate instances like Tom's, we need to ingrain the fundamental values of inclusion for all in our society. This positive change starts with our children. When schools teach students about the Civil Rights Movement, it makes them more appreciative of people of different races and ethnic backgrounds. Similarly, we believe that learning about the Disability Movement is just as important as learning about the Civil Rights Movement as it shows that a disability does not define a person. Stories of Helen Keller should be taught alongside those of Martin Luther King Jr. The book, Wonder, should be just as much a required reading as To Kill a Mockingbird is.
If we can better educate our children about special needs, they can grow up to build a more inclusive world than ever before. Special Needs Special People is working tirelessly to contact members of the Board of Education in our local area to implement this, and is currently crafting an inclusion program for our children. However, to be able to fully advocate for this, we need your help too. Please support us by reaching out to your local Board of Education to tell them about our education initiative. Together, let's craft a curriculum that bridges the gap between students with special needs and their peers. We dream of a future where a group of children asks a little boy with a wheelchair to come and play with them.
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