Petition Update I went to visit Stephen on Sunday July 6. I was only allowed to visit him upstairs on the ward for a short while. As the nurses brought Stephen to me, he came towards me being held by two staff members. He was very weak on his legs, very catatonic and very sleepy. I was in complete shock in seeing my son all drugged up. He could not stand on his own legs. It was very hard for me to see him like that. I just felt the floor opening under my feet. I could not bear seeing my son in that state. All I wanted to do was to snatch him out of there as he turned to me, his words all slurred and said; “mummy no here, mummy take Ste out, mummy take Ste home.” It just about broke my heart leaving him there and I was tempted to take him with me even at the high risk of being arrested by the police. As Ste is under the Mental Health Act, I couldn’t do that. But truth be told I did not care. If little Joshy had not been with me I would have taken him. I would have risked being arrested. My son does not have anyone there for him aside from strangers. My son is in a prison with no quality of life. He has no life. Dear all, if you have children, grandchildren or care for a child then you know how hard this would be for you, if your child or grandchild was locked up like a criminal. My son is not a criminal or mentally ill. What is his crime for being there? He is severally autistic with severe learning difficulties and severe challenging behaviours. Please sign this petition, not just for my son, but for so many other sons and daughters. Since we started the #bringstephenhome campaign and petition I have had dozens of parents saying that they are in a similar situation, that they too have a child in a psychiatric unit like Stephen, instead of being in an autism specialist unit. Let's bring this outdated system into the 21st century; we are not living in the 18 century. Let's bring our children with autism home to where they belong, as a person with equal human rights like any other individual. Let's give them the help they need in an autism facility that simply knows what they are doing. Let's stop medical, social and governmental bodies sending our children to mental institutions as if we are still stuck in the 1920’s. Enough is enough. It is time to stop this barbaric and old fashioned way in how we care for individuals who have severe autism.