Family Kicked Off Flight After Daughter With Autism Deemed 'Disruptive'

[Gracie]

I grew up with autism, and I admit I'm divided on this issue. I can see why the airline would remove the child, but it never should have come to that. Why couldn't the airline provide a child with autism a first class meal? Not for the sake of the other passengers, but for the sake of not being another heartless corporation.

Maybe no room up there in first class or nothing available at that time to heat up a meal? and nobody willing to give up their seats to the family? It isn't their job to do that. It was the mothers job. Plus, the mom said she could become violent.

For everyone in this thread.........If you were captain of that flight....what would YOU have done? For myself, I would have done what the captain did. If I were United, I would give a full refund, and make sure another flight was available that COULD accomodate the family where they could control the girl IF she became violent or wanted a hot meal or whatever. But I would have put her off the plane any way you look at it.

 

[Gracie]

Lets go with another scenario. So...United shows they have a heart and the captain does NOT remove her. She goes wild, someone gets hurt or worse, the girl reaches an exit door or kicks something that causes a problem with the plane. Are they still heartless to the girl or are they heartless to the other passengers?

 

[aaronleland]

I grew up with autism, and I admit I'm divided on this issue. I can see why the airline would remove the child, but it never should have come to that. Why couldn't the airline provide a child with autism a first class meal? Not for the sake of the other passengers, but for the sake of not being another heartless corporation.

Maybe no room up there in first class or nothing available at that time to heat up a meal? and nobody willing to give up their seats to the family? It isn't their job to do that. It was the mothers job. Plus, the mom said she could become violent.

For everyone in this thread.........If you were captain of that flight....what would YOU have done? For myself, I would have done what the captain did. If I were United, I would give a full refund, and make sure another flight was available that COULD accomodate the family where they could control the girl IF she became violent or wanted a hot meal or whatever. But I would have put her off the plane any way you look at it.

Nobody had to give up a seat. They just had to wheel a cart with a hot meal into coach. It was a 2 hour flight. Nobody should have feared for their safety over a 15 year old girl.

 

[aaronleland]

Lets go with another scenario. So...United shows they have a heart and the captain does NOT remove her. She goes wild, someone gets hurt or worse, the girl reaches an exit door or kicks something that causes a problem with the plane. Are they still heartless to the girl or are they heartless to the other passengers?

How many autistic children do you think have boarded a plane before? Probably thousands. How many have brought down a plane? How many children in general have been disruptive on a plane? This is only making news because they removed the child from the flight. There is no indication that this girl was a risk to the passengers.

 

[Gracie]

Lets go with another scenario. So...United shows they have a heart and the captain does NOT remove her. She goes wild, someone gets hurt or worse, the girl reaches an exit door or kicks something that causes a problem with the plane. Are they still heartless to the girl or are they heartless to the other passengers?

How many autistic children do you think have boarded a plane before? Probably thousands. How many have brought down a plane? How many children in general have been disruptive on a plane? This is only making news because they removed the child from the flight. There is no indication that this girl was a risk to the passengers.

Her mother said she could be violent. Seems to me the mom is what made the red flags wave. And if they were midflight takeoff...or soon after taking off, the crew does not prep hot meals. Nothing is ready.
Again, it is not the airlines problem OR the passengers problem. It is the parents problem if their child "can become violent".

 

[aaronleland]

Lets go with another scenario. So...United shows they have a heart and the captain does NOT remove her. She goes wild, someone gets hurt or worse, the girl reaches an exit door or kicks something that causes a problem with the plane. Are they still heartless to the girl or are they heartless to the other passengers?

How many autistic children do you think have boarded a plane before? Probably thousands. How many have brought down a plane? How many children in general have been disruptive on a plane? This is only making news because they removed the child from the flight. There is no indication that this girl was a risk to the passengers.

Her mother said she could be violent. Seems to me the mom is what made the red flags wave. And if they were midflight takeoff...or soon after taking off, the crew does not prep hot meals. Nothing is ready.
Again, it is not the airlines problem OR the passengers problem. It is the parents problem if their child "can become violent".

I agree that the mother making that comment was a mistake. I'm autistic. I can become violent, but rarely do. In the end I think the biggest mistake was the mother making that comment, but I still think the airline acted incorrectly.

 

[Gracie]

The airline is responsible for the safety of all its passengers. The many outweigh the few. But that is just my own opinion.
No worries though. As much as I want them to stand firm, we all know they will make good with this mom and her kid in some form or another.

 

[mudwhistle]

It's sad how terrified people in this country are of people with autism; as evidenced in this thread. Thank goodness awareness is increasing.

Really? Terrified? Pahlease. You surprise me. A screaming kid...young or old...disrupting others and possibly causing harm to themselves or to others is not "terrified".

She caused no harm to herself or others. But the people saw fit to have an emergency landing. Calling them "terrified" is an understatement.

The people saw no such thing. The captain decided that having an autistic in full meltdown wasn't worth the risk. Maybe you should address the POO mother who saw fit to say "either my daughter gets what she wants or she will have a meltdown where she will scream, hit, scratch and spit."

Whoops, time to land this sucker before that happens.

You are an evil human being always expecting the worst of everyone. God forbid you or someone in your family ever has a child with autism and has to come face to face with the type of absolute hatred you have for them.

The mother never said what you quoted. You are scum.

Typical liberal response to everything.
Everyone else has to put up with something that would drive anyone crazy....and not wanting to means we hate people with Autism?

Maybe we should force you to have to sit between two Autistic Rush Babies fighting over who gets a hot meal first."

Sometimes you have to draw a line. Liberals constantly like going over that line and yelling at everyone who has common-sense enough not to go over it.

 

[Papageorgio]

It's sad how terrified people in this country are of people with autism; as evidenced in this thread. Thank goodness awareness is increasing.

Really? Terrified? Pahlease. You surprise me. A screaming kid...young or old...disrupting others and possibly causing harm to themselves or to others is not "terrified".

She caused no harm to herself or others. But the people saw fit to have an emergency landing. Calling them "terrified" is an understatement.

The people saw no such thing. The captain decided that having an autistic in full meltdown wasn't worth the risk. Maybe you should address the POO mother who saw fit to say "either my daughter gets what she wants or she will have a meltdown where she will scream, hit, scratch and spit."

Whoops, time to land this sucker before that happens.

You are an evil human being always expecting the worst of everyone. God forbid you or someone in your family ever has a child with autism and has to come face to face with the type of absolute hatred you have for them.

The mother never said what you quoted. You are scum.

Fear of Autism Family Removed From United Airlines Flight - WSPA.com

FTA: "She told KOIN 6 News she explained that if her daughter didn't get a hot meal, she would “get to the meltdown point” and maybe scratch someone. Juliette soon got a first-class meal."

"Marilyn Hedlund said Juliette had been “howling” before the incident and the flight attendants had been working quietly with the family for nearly an hour before the pilot made the decision to make an emergency landing.
“There was a lot of howling, and we thought well, what's going on? And it never stopped,” Hedlund said.

“She wasn't put off the plane because she had autism, she was put off the plane because she was maybe proposing some kind of a threat, to (about) 170 other people at 36,000 feet, which doesn't make anyone feel safe,” Hedlund said. “What if she got crazy and got up and opened an exit door at 36,000 feet?”"

 

[mudwhistle]

It's sad how terrified people in this country are of people with autism; as evidenced in this thread. Thank goodness awareness is increasing.

Really? Terrified? Pahlease. You surprise me. A screaming kid...young or old...disrupting others and possibly causing harm to themselves or to others is not "terrified".

She caused no harm to herself or others. But the people saw fit to have an emergency landing. Calling them "terrified" is an understatement.

Well, we will just have to agree to disagree, hon.

I guess so. I hope that if you ever have someone in your family who is on the spectrum, you don't ever run into anyone like yourself.

My cousin on my Daddy's side had Cerebral-Palsy. My brother and his daughter were bi-polar, my grandmother went nuts from dementia before I was born, my oldest sister had a stroke and so did my mom. My mom had her's when I was 9. So I know what it's like to live around the handicapped. I also know there are limitations on what you can expect the public to put up with.

 

[JOSweetHeart]

I grew up with autism, and I admit I'm divided on this issue. I can see why the airline would remove the child, but it never should have come to that. Why couldn't the airline provide a child with autism a first class meal? Not for the sake of the other passengers, but for the sake of not being another heartless corporation.

To me, this is a good point. If that meal was the only thing needed to keep the girl in line, then I don't believe that her family was asking for much. It wasn't like a new car was being asked for.

God bless you and the girl and her family always!!!

Holly

 

[Delta4Embassy]

And maybe you can tell me why?!
While our government(i understand that there are two words to describe that - "Double Standards") are trying to make lives of one part of our society better, they forget about other...
How long will we see such incompetence?!
An Oregon mom has filed a complaint against United Airlines after it removed her and family from a flight because it said her 15-year-old daughter, who has autism, had become "disruptive."
Family Kicked Off Flight After Daughter With Autism Deemed Disruptive - NBC News
The woman, Dr. Donna Beegle of Tigard, Oregon — a prominent advocate for anti-poverty programs who frequently consults with state and federal government agencies — was returning home with her family from a trip to Walt Disney World last week when her daughter Juliette became agitated because she was hungry during a layover in Houston, Beegle said.

So we as a society should set the bar low enough so people with disabilities can meet it? Should we change traffic lights too to 'kinda red' and if you stop or just slow down alittle that's "good enough?"

If someone with disabilities can't adapt to the norms and standards of the rest of society stay home. Sorry but we can't just let people with problems act however they may in public. There are safety concerns and public good interests.

 

[Roadrunner]

BTW, the article says the girl was hungry.

Why didn't her mother feed her?

Because her goddamned mother was looking for a lawsuit!!!

 

[Roadrunner]

I saw an interview with the mother. The staff was quite willing to feed the girl, except that she refused all food except for hot food. Hot meals are only served in first class. The temperature of hot meals is up to interpretation. The mother warned the staff that if her daughter was not immediately served a hot meal, the girl would go into full melt down including hitting, screaming, spitting and scratching.

The pilot had to land the plane and remove such a threat.

The last time I flew, I got half a coke and no peanuts.

I should have pitched a fit and sued, since I am morally handicapped.

 

[Delta4Embassy]

Have to keep in mind that people with severe autism and other 'out of control' disabilities may look like people, but strictly speaking they're not. A person has a functional frontal lobe which governs our actions in public. If you're so disabled you can't control yourself, then you're basicly a wild animal without a leash. If you wouldn't welcome a gorilla or bear on a plane because it might stomp around or attack people, why apply a different standard to a severely disabled human?

Don't let emotions overrule your common sense.

 

[Roadrunner]

I guess the girl needed to have hot food. The mom was unable to carry that kind of snack on board. There was a delay so the mom asked the staff for a hot sandwich that she could buy. From what I read they weren't being very helpful. I'm sure with a packed plane stewardesses were busy enough and most likely didn't have a clue about dealing with special needs people. The girl did finally get a hot rice dish and she was content.
On one hand I admire the family for taking her so many places. I do pt work in therapeutic riding and from talking to parents know they are constantly feeling isolated and just want their kids to have the best life possible.
Still...I've seen a couple older teen boys have "frustration meltdowns" sometimes for no apparent reason and it can get live real quick.
Not sure how severe her issues were, but being stuck in a crowded plane wouldn't be a good scenario.
I think the mom is trying to encourage more training
( awareness) for this type of thing.

Mom should carry those MREs that heat themselves.

Family should be lucky they weren't arrested for being such assholes as to bring this kid on a plane.

 

[timslash]

And maybe you can tell me why?!
While our government(i understand that there are two words to describe that - "Double Standards") are trying to make lives of one part of our society better, they forget about other...
How long will we see such incompetence?!
An Oregon mom has filed a complaint against United Airlines after it removed her and family from a flight because it said her 15-year-old daughter, who has autism, had become "disruptive."
Family Kicked Off Flight After Daughter With Autism Deemed Disruptive - NBC News
The woman, Dr. Donna Beegle of Tigard, Oregon — a prominent advocate for anti-poverty programs who frequently consults with state and federal government agencies — was returning home with her family from a trip to Walt Disney World last week when her daughter Juliette became agitated because she was hungry during a layover in Houston, Beegle said.

So we as a society should set the bar low enough so people with disabilities can meet it? Should we change traffic lights too to 'kinda red' and if you stop or just slow down alittle that's "good enough?"

If someone with disabilities can't adapt to the norms and standards of the rest of society stay home. Sorry but we can't just let people with problems act however they may in public. There are safety concerns and public good interests.

This girl just was hungry!
She wasn't aggressive, she did nothing to be blamed for, she just wanted to eat, there was no reason to call cops, because they could just find some ****ing food for this girl, because she's member of our society too.
>Should we change traffic lights too to 'kinda red'
We already created traffic light for color blind people for example.

 

[Katzndogz]

I grew up with autism, and I admit I'm divided on this issue. I can see why the airline would remove the child, but it never should have come to that. Why couldn't the airline provide a child with autism a first class meal? Not for the sake of the other passengers, but for the sake of not being another heartless corporation.

Maybe no room up there in first class or nothing available at that time to heat up a meal? and nobody willing to give up their seats to the family? It isn't their job to do that. It was the mothers job. Plus, the mom said she could become violent.

For everyone in this thread.........If you were captain of that flight....what would YOU have done? For myself, I would have done what the captain did. If I were United, I would give a full refund, and make sure another flight was available that COULD accomodate the family where they could control the girl IF she became violent or wanted a hot meal or whatever. But I would have put her off the plane any way you look at it.

Nobody had to give up a seat. They just had to wheel a cart with a hot meal into coach. It was a 2 hour flight. Nobody should have feared for their safety over a 15 year old girl.

Planes do not have full service kitchens. Meals if they are served, do not carry extra. There are as many hot meals as there are passengers in first class. If mother had wanted to make sure hot food was available to her daughter, should have bought first class tickets.

 

[Roadrunner]

It's sad how terrified people in this country are of people with autism; as evidenced in this thread. Thank goodness awareness is increasing.

No one is terrified. The word you are looking for is tolerate. As in people are not willing to tolerate.

You've shown time and again here you are an evil person. I have no comment for you.

You commented before you said you had no comment.

 

[Delta4Embassy]

And maybe you can tell me why?!
While our government(i understand that there are two words to describe that - "Double Standards") are trying to make lives of one part of our society better, they forget about other...
How long will we see such incompetence?!
An Oregon mom has filed a complaint against United Airlines after it removed her and family from a flight because it said her 15-year-old daughter, who has autism, had become "disruptive."
Family Kicked Off Flight After Daughter With Autism Deemed Disruptive - NBC News
The woman, Dr. Donna Beegle of Tigard, Oregon — a prominent advocate for anti-poverty programs who frequently consults with state and federal government agencies — was returning home with her family from a trip to Walt Disney World last week when her daughter Juliette became agitated because she was hungry during a layover in Houston, Beegle said.

So we as a society should set the bar low enough so people with disabilities can meet it? Should we change traffic lights too to 'kinda red' and if you stop or just slow down alittle that's "good enough?"

If someone with disabilities can't adapt to the norms and standards of the rest of society stay home. Sorry but we can't just let people with problems act however they may in public. There are safety concerns and public good interests.

This girl just was hungry!
She wasn't aggressive, she did nothing to be blamed for, she just wanted to eat, there was no reason to call cops, because they could just find some ****ing food for this girl, because she's member of our society too.
>Should we change traffic lights too to 'kinda red'
We already created traffic light for color blind people for example.

She did something that prompted the incident. A person with a personality quirk doesn't get a plane's detination changed. And it wasn't she was hungry. It was oweing to her condition, she had to have it her way. Sorry but society doesn't adapt itself to an individual's demands. You play by society's rules or you stay indoors at home.

Society has laws and standards of behaviour ALL are held to. If we suddenly apply a sidfferent standard for those with disabilities, where do we draw the line? How disabled do you have to be to be exempt from standards governing behaviour? What about retardation? Can you just be dumb and get a pass? What about other conditions? Can you run up and down the aisle with your pants down around your ankles screaming at the top of your lungs because you're disabled to?

The girl was a safety concern. If when she doesn't get her way she's prone to scratching and biting she shouldn't be allowed on planes EVER. Wanna take your spastic child to a chaotic amusement park with flashing lights, vast crowds, and people in costumes to see what happens, go ahead. But you don't endanger the public putting them onto a plane whose safety hinges on people following safety rules.