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| Christopher Baker |
Let's make sure there are some consequences for the teacher at Mercer County Intermediate School in Harrodsburg, Kentucky,
who placed a 9 year-old autistic child into a duffel bag and knotted the top because he was misbehaving at school. The boy is Christopher Baker, and his mother, Sandra Baker, was called by the school and told to pick up her son because he was acting out. When she arrived, she found her son enclosed in a knotted duffel bag. The teacher's aide struggled to untie the bag, and her son emerged frightened and sweating. Sandra later learned that Christopher had been in the bag for at least 20 minutes and that this was
not the first time they placed him in a so-called "therapy bag." It also appears that Christopher is not the only child being abused in this way as
two other investigations haven take place this year due to informal complaints; one where a "student was nearly asphyxiated while being restrained," and the other student vomited from panic attacks after spending most of the academic year "confined to a closet, with no ventilation or outside source of light."
Let's be clear, this would be an abusive act to do to any child. But autistic children are especially vulnerable to abuse because they often struggle to communicate what is being done to them to those who can help. Take action today to ensure the proper protections and consequences are in place to protect these children.
Take Action:
- Sign this petition on Change.org, calling for proper training and consequences for teachers.
- Click here to support Senate Bill 2020, "Keeping All Students Safe Act," which calls for guidelines to protect children from abusive forms of discipline, by going to Congress.org where you can send an email to your Federal Representatives in two short steps.
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