"Don't Laugh at Me, Don't Call Me Names" (magazine/journal article)

Summary:
Jan Blacher’s and Stacey Lauderdale’s article, “Don’t Laugh at Me, Don’t Call Me Names,” begins with the description of an eighth grader named Ken, who suffers from Asperger’s Syndrome. Ken is very good with computers and is even nicknamed the “electronic wiz” (Blacher 62). Recently, Ken has been subject to continually bullying. It was discovered that three kids from his Physical Education class stole his ipod, but when his parents asked about it, Ken denied that any bullying had taken place. Sadly, Ken’s story is not uncommon for other children with Asperger’s Syndrome. So many kids with Asperger’s are victimized, and parents of these children are concerned for their child’s “social survival,” for the bullying can cause negative effects—such as clinical levels of anxiety or depression (Blacher 62). Blacher and Lauderdale believe the sole reason that kids with Asperger’s are subject to bullying is because they don’t have the appropriate social awareness. In the article, a list of strategies and interventions is provided for parents and teachers, so that this bullying can be prevented.

Response:
I thought the article “Don’t Laugh at Me, Don’t Call Me Names” was a sad—but very true—article. I first read about the victimization of those with Asperger’s in one of my earlier sources—Look Me in the Eye: My Life with Asperger’s. In this memoir, John Elder Robinson describes his difficult childhood. When he asked several other kids if they would play with him, the kids refused and started calling him “monkey face” (Robinson 17). After this, Robinson went crying to his mom and said, “I just don’t know how to make friends. No one likes me.” All Robinson’s mom could do was rub his back, for she didn’t know what to say (Robinson 17). I understand exactly how his mom felt. Since I work in the playroom at the YMCA, I myself have actually witnessed autistic children being abused by other children, and it never fails to anger me. There is one autistic boy in particular that I see constantly abused. He is the most precious little boy, but he seems to live in his own little world. One day, he accidentally knocked over another child’s toy, and the other child started throwing balls at him. Not knowing what else to do, I immediately scolded the boy throwing the balls and told him to stop. When he told me that the autistic child walk right through his toys, I replied, “I know. He didn’t know any better.” When the boy asked what I meant by that, I didn’t know how to respond, for he was too young to understand the meaning of autism. All in all, I feel the same way as parents with autistic children do. The only thing we can really do is watch for any signs of bullying, and if it is detected, we must stop it before it can continue.

Blacher, Jan, and Stacey Lauderdale. “Don’t Laugh at Me, Don’t Call Me Names.” The Exceptional Parent. 38.8 (August 2008): 62(2). General OneFile. Gale. Alabama Virtual Library Remote Access. 9 April 9, 2009 <http://find.galegroup.com/ips/start.do?prodld=IPS>.

Robinson, John Elder. Look Me in the Eye: My Life with Asperger’s. New York, NY: Crown Publishers, 2007.