Living in barbie land is a dream - Living in the real world not so easy. There was a barbie doll in a wheelchair brought out over the last few years and now there is a Downs Syndrome barbie being brought out by Mattel. However, you would have to be living in Barbieland if you think everything is wonderful and ok in disabilities for children or adults or youth in the real world – the truth of the matter is that parents are living on the edge wondering what will happen to their vulnerable disability children – it is more like the reality of Oppenheimer – the reality of a dark world we live in, where the rights of our innocent children are ignored, living with a sense of dread and the betrayal by others you trusted or thought cared about your child or adult vulnerable disability child who are non verbal – people you believed to be on your side then one day allow harm to come to your child or are the ones who actually do it. Or the apathy and coldness of other parents of special needs children, who will not support you when your child is harmed and turn their backs on you. The managers and workers who pretend it, the verbal or physical abuse never happened. Psychopaths? Maybe or a sign of our selfish society, and the wrong person who became a support worker, who took up disability work and got stressed and had no qualms in lashing out at someone who could not tell anyone what happened to him or her because they were non verbal and had no way of expressing their fear, horror and pain except to cry out or withdraw.
Similar to the abuse that happens in childcare it cannot be caught what is done in secret unless it is caught on camera. Just today the news is reporting on a sex offender who abused 91 children many in different childcare centres in Brisbane, Sydney and overseas. He has only been caught because he put his filming images on the dark web. https://www.abc.net.au/.../qld-afp-child-abuse.../102672216
Once again the cameras made the catching of the abuse possible and the prosecuting of the offender can now occur without the cameras there would be no way of catching that person let alone proving it. The ABC News (1 August 2023) states today"We allege the 45-year-old man from the Gold Coast recorded all his alleged offending on his phone and cameras. The AFP is highly confident that all 87 Australian children who were recorded in the alleged child abuse material have been identified.”
The police released the news today.
“This is a joint media release between the AFP, Queensland Police Service and New South Wales Police Force.
An AFP investigation has led to a former childcare worker being charged with 1623 child abuse offences against 91 children - including 136 counts of rape and 110 counts of sexual intercourse with a child under 10 - in Brisbane, Sydney and overseas between 2007 and 2022.”
This sort of offending can also occur in disabilities but especially to those who cannot speak with disabilities are even more at risk. A mother caught the teachers of her special needs daughter abusing her verbally, she caught them by sending a small camera to school on her daughter Portia. Without it she would never be able to prove that they were verbally abusing the little 5 year old who could not speak. She was very unhappy and and did not want to go to school and her mother knew something was wrong. https://9now.nine.com.au/.../4df1755b-a37f-46b5-ac88
 The reporter from current affair notes (2023 June) This is a story about a mother's instinct," Clancey said about Portia's mother, who planted a listening device in her daughter's pocket before taking her to school at a high-needs unit in Sydney's north-west.
The reporter said young Portia's parents Janey and Jason Concepcion purchased the device because they "felt like something wasn't right at school" when their daughter came home from Riverstone Public School upset, with bruises and a changed demeanour. She said "it was awful" to hear the way Portia's teacher, Bronwen Massie, spoke to her knowing she couldn't go home and tell her parents. The verbal abuse by the teacher was shocking. If ‘assault’ is identified in it can be not just actions but words assault where the person receiving it sees that they may be hurt, the may feel fear but even if they do not express that if they are being abused or threatened in some way it is assault in the courts. If they are actually touched again assault even if it is not a hit. This vulnerable little girl had to come home with bruises and trauma and could not tell her parents because she was non verbal.
As parents of special needs children we have to be vigilant we have to keep our eyes open, we have to stand up for them and by them and we see something we must call it out. We must be the brave soldiers for our children because they have no one else and we must always make providers accountable, to block it out is no answer as our children are the ones who suffer in the end. Even better if we can talk to those we trust family or friends who do care about our child too and get support to stand up for our non verbal and vulnerable children. They are certainly lambs among the wolves just like the childcare children - as this recent case of the sex offender in childcare spans over 15 years and many of the parents may never have known it happened to their child. Those children are now teenagers who may have blocked it out as they were preschoolers even but it would have had a negative impact on their lives in any case. This person has been found out. What about the ones who have not been found out? Why does the NDIS say they will make sure our children are safe with their providers when they do not mandate cctv Cameras? When they do not shut them down when they have abuse and harm occurring and reported on continually over the years. Sign my petition for mandating CCTV cameras in disabilities: change.org/disabilitycameras
Bill shorten might say that most providers are brilliant in his press releases – but the truth of it is as most parents of disabilities children know, that most are not and cover up abuse and try to make more money out of those they are said to care for than they should , and to trully find a good disability services provider is very difficult and like finding gold which can then change if the managers, or workers who were caring and compassionate change. Shorten may say he is changing things and catching the rorting but most of those he is catching are those providers making extra money and stealing from the participants – but he is not catching or penalizing those who hurt others, abuse or neglect them.
So, no we are not living in a Barbie world and people are not caring and sharing or keeping human rights upheld for our vulnerable non verbal children in disabilities and there is not equality for those who are suffering in this way, and the parents who wonder how they will protect their children. It is only a barbie world for the Hollywood people who pretend it is so and the celebrities and rich who can afford to live their Barbie world and ignore the rights and suffering of others. We need more addressing of what is the reality and we need to protect those vulnerable from harm by giving them CCTV cameras and their human right to be free from fear and we need to actually care about others and not allow the bullies and money mongers to win. Barbie had to face reality and the rest of this society also needs to and address what is happening in disabilities that is not being taken up by the justice system as it should be, and the judges who ignore the proof without the CCTV they just will not listen.
All the best
Anndrea x
sign my Petition:     change.org/disabilitycameras

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