Did John McCain really say that Sara Palin was an authority on Autism? And that she knows about the challenges that special needs families face better than anyone? Did he really SAY that?.
How could Sarah Palin know what it’s like to RAISE a child with an autistic spectrum disorder? Her son is what? 6 months, 7 months old? The news has reported that he has Downs Syndrome, not autism. I’m sure that she is beginning to learn about the special needs of a Downs Syndrome child, but I don’t see how that makes her an expert on autism.
Has Sarah taken her kid to therapy and had to figure out if insurance will pay for it? Has she had to have her kid tested? Has she had to find a school for him to attend? Has she had to negotiate with her school district about appropriate placement? Has she had to set up social skills groups, and play groups, and support systems, and expert witnesses, and doctors appointments? Has she had to change her career or give one up in order to make sure her kid gets everything he needs? Has she had to make any sacrifices in order to raise her child? Unless I’m missing something, the answer to ALL those questions is “NO.”
I’m sorry folks, but after living the life of a special needs parent for over 10 years, I find it hard to accept Sarah Palin as a special needs expert. She’s a rookie at best – with no autism experience. As hard as I try not to be insulted by the assertion that Sarah knows more about the challenges of autism than anyone, I just can’t help it.
Sarah has not said one thing that she has done that allows her, or John McCain, for that matter, to presume that she has walked in my shoes and understands my family’s challenges. Maybe in 10 years, when Sarah tells her story about how she and her family addressed her son’s needs, she may have enough experience to say she understands. .. . . but not now. All I see is John McCain and Sarah Palin trying to use my family’s challenges to try to get a soundbite. I can’t help it. I am insulted!
If McCain-Palin think that by simply mentioning the word “Autism” in a speech, I will vote for them, they are badly mistaken. There is no way that I will vote for them now!
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