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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To think an autistic child should not be treated like this by the police?

449 replies

Immoralplant · 10/08/2023 08:10

I don’t know the background to this video, but at no point is there any suggestion by the police that this autistic teenager has done anything other than say words the police didn’t like.

I am absolutely shocked that this is happening in Britain.

IABU - that’s an appropriate police response to homophobic words
IANBU - those police officers should be sacked

Warning: the video shows scenes of an autistic teenager being hurt.

twitter.com/SineadKelly113/status/1689176155562143744?s=20

OP posts:
Thread gallery
8
S3050n · 10/08/2023 21:33

Aside from the ridiculous force involved auyismis a protected disability.

The officer should not have said she didn’t care she had autism. She should have had autism awareness training and been well aware that autism involves communication difficulties.
She clearly didn’t have any autism awareness and one presumes zero training.

That isn’t ok as it indicates the force as a whole are not being trained in disability awareness.

molotovcupcakes · 10/08/2023 21:35

It shouldn't be up to the police to taxi pissed up mouthy teens around.

They couldn’t even manage that & completely fucked it up to be fair, it was obviously too much to hope that the six of them could accomplish such a difficult task.

RocketPanda · 10/08/2023 22:04

A drunk autistic tennage girl is extremely vulnerable and should not be put in a taxi. The police were 100% the right ones to be charged with bringing her home. Unfortunately these particular officers are a disgrace and should be sacked. The girls mum said the blonde woman had her daughters arms gripped very tight before anything was ever said about lesbians.
I agree with the poster upthread who said there seems to be a weird sort of pleasure certain people get from pushing an autistic person into meltdown.

MCOut · 10/08/2023 22:29

They should never have treated her like that. This was not in anyway about protecting minorities from hate crimes. I agree that the officer was probably already angry with the teenage girl and used it as an excuse to try and legitimise her bullying.

These cries of thought crime are absolutely ridiculous considering the police routinely ignore and participate in discrimination. The problem is not that there are laws around hate crimes, the problem is that UK policing is rife with unconscionable bullying staff who are a law onto themselves.

TrickorTreacle · 10/08/2023 23:34

BoredPandas · 10/08/2023 08:40

There must be more to this. I’m absolutely sick and tired of little snippets of videos that don’t show the true situation.

I agree with you. Certainly the video isn't nice and the girl would have been scared, but being arrested isn't meant to be a walk in the park. She got arrested because she's done something that pissed other people off, like it or not.

WeetabixTowels · 10/08/2023 23:45

FuppingEll · 10/08/2023 20:28

To be fair that is her parents job or even a taxis job. It shouldn't be up to the police to taxi pissed up mouthy teens around.

Show quote history

Children who should be at home but are instead intoxicated in public should just be left should they?

WeetabixTowels · 10/08/2023 23:46

Thankfully the police don’t (shouldnt) only help upstanding well behaved citizens they also help people who would otherwise be in danger

LocoCocoa · 10/08/2023 23:48

How the hell can someone be arrested for calling someone a lesbian?! Even if the girl was trying to be offensive it’s hardly worthy of arrest. As a lesbian myself, with an autistic teen I can’t understand what I’ve just watched at all!

WeetabixTowels · 10/08/2023 23:49

TrickorTreacle · 10/08/2023 23:34

I agree with you. Certainly the video isn't nice and the girl would have been scared, but being arrested isn't meant to be a walk in the park. She got arrested because she's done something that pissed other people off, like it or not.

Show quote history

Is it a crime to piss people off now? Can you point to the legislation that makes this an arrestable offence?

ShinyYellowTeapot · 11/08/2023 00:54

@TrickorTreacle your comment passes me off, so can i come to your house with 5 of my burly mates and drag you out of a cupboard and restrain you as my mood fits?

TrickorTreacle · 11/08/2023 00:59

@WeetabixTowels
@ShinyYellowTeapot

Calm down both. She got arrested for a reason.

Mumsnet sometimes...

ShinyYellowTeapot · 11/08/2023 01:33

@TrickorTreacle what was the reason and the context? What was the legislation and the background? I'm calm; why aren't you?

dcbc1234 · 11/08/2023 02:41

S3050n · 10/08/2023 21:33

Aside from the ridiculous force involved auyismis a protected disability.

The officer should not have said she didn’t care she had autism. She should have had autism awareness training and been well aware that autism involves communication difficulties.
She clearly didn’t have any autism awareness and one presumes zero training.

That isn’t ok as it indicates the force as a whole are not being trained in disability awareness.

WYP been much too preoccupied with the TQ+ stuff. Not done enough on LGB, if so offended at the mere suggestion that she could be 'lesbian like her nanna'.

TheKeatingFive · 11/08/2023 03:14

Calm down both. She got arrested for a reason

What reason? The police statement doesn't reference anything beyond what we know. She wasn't charged.

DdraigGoch · 11/08/2023 04:57

TrickorTreacle · 11/08/2023 00:59

@WeetabixTowels
@ShinyYellowTeapot

Calm down both. She got arrested for a reason.

Mumsnet sometimes...

What crime did she commit?

Green777 · 11/08/2023 07:00

I find the statement released by West Yorkshire Police to be equally shocking and disturbing. They are maintaining that the comment was abuse and urging the public to consider the ‘context’.

They then go on to affirm that the only thing the girl actually did was make a comment about the PO looking like her lesbian nana.

Incredible.

Green777 · 11/08/2023 07:03

TrickorTreacle · 11/08/2023 00:59

@WeetabixTowels
@ShinyYellowTeapot

Calm down both. She got arrested for a reason.

Mumsnet sometimes...

They couldn’t charge her with anything at all.

She was arrested out of spite for a simple comment that should have been ignored taking into consideration autistic people see literal connections and say them.

So you are of course completely wrong.

loislovesstewie · 11/08/2023 07:45

I agree that she was arrested for stating something quite literal; that she thought the police officer looked like a lesbian because she looks like her nana who is a lesbian. A bit like saying if it looks like a duck and quacks like a duck it is a duck. She didn't shout abuse which included the word lesbian or a euphemism for it.
I really am concerned about it.

Boomboom22 · 11/08/2023 08:13

Ah finally I get it. I was very confused how this could be considered homophobic. As pp say if she is nb or a transman maybe this upset her. Just highlights how it's not possible to not misgender without reading people's minds.

Boomboom22 · 11/08/2023 08:14

Also as been said nana lesbian pr9bably means terf not lgbtq friendly? As older lesbians seem to be at the forefront of gc.

borntobequiet · 11/08/2023 08:21

And of course nanas are old, and being old (especially if having opinions) is a horrifying concept for some young women of a certain mindset.

Fuckingfuming1 · 11/08/2023 08:32

in retrospect, the advice is do not allow the police into your house without a warrant they don’t get to step over the threshold. They are not allowed to gain entry unless it is to prevent loss of life.

I guess in that scenario, if they return your child to you, you push your child through the front door then you shut it.

curaçao · 11/08/2023 08:34

DdraigGoch · 11/08/2023 04:57

What crime did she commit?

Show quote history

POlice found her in a drunk and disorderly state and took her home.So D and D for starters

CoffeeWithCheese · 11/08/2023 08:49

Green777 · 11/08/2023 07:00

I find the statement released by West Yorkshire Police to be equally shocking and disturbing. They are maintaining that the comment was abuse and urging the public to consider the ‘context’.

They then go on to affirm that the only thing the girl actually did was make a comment about the PO looking like her lesbian nana.

Incredible.

One of the features of communication from a lot of autistic people, that does tend to be misinterpreted by neurotypicals at times, is the attempts to relate to others by mapping it directly onto their own experience. Can get dismissed (I've had it on here pre-diagnosis) as "me-railing" or "hijacking" the conversation but it's actually a clumsy, lacking a full grasp of social communication norms (whoda thought it - with a disorder characterised by atypical social communication) attempt to build commonality and relate to others.

I've been told "you look like my sister - I don't like her" by clients. Doesn't mean they don't like me... just means I a) look like their sister... and then b) so I know a bit more about their sister - they'll give me some information about her and the first fact that has come into their head is that they don't like her.

Mousehoel · 11/08/2023 08:49

curaçao · 11/08/2023 08:34

POlice found her in a drunk and disorderly state and took her home.So D and D for starters

Show quote history

No, the police statement agrees with the mother, that the arrest was due to a homophobic comment.