Words: 911
The aggressive unfairness toward the mentally ill and the advantage taken of them has not decreased through the years, but very well dined from the innocent eye of the public. To American people, those with mental illnesses seem to be treated much better than they have been known to be in the past. Though born the same way as those around them, the people with disabilities were not actually looked at as people. It used to be that they Were looked at as some thing or an idea Of a person.
In the book Flowers for Algerian, the main character, Charlie was treated very poorly and unfairly. While he was young, kids would throw things at him while making fun of him, his own mother beat and tormented the poor boy until he was almost petrified of life itself, and growing up, those who worked with him at the bakery constantly made fun of every little thing he did. Because Charlie was mentally retarded, he did not know the way they treated him was terrible. He had a loving heart that accepted anyone into his life (Keyes, 1966).
Today seems to have its short comings about the way people with these challenges have been treated, but comparatively, they now have more freedoms and treatments from others. Although America is getting better, there are still some cases that are shocking and mortifying. You would think that a person who did not face the battles of having a disability would take pity and care for those who do, but some have proved us wrong. There have been reports even in schools of these terrifying events. This problem is largely ignored and unacceptable.
People with disabilities are the most likely to be victimized over those who do not have them. They are also repeatedly abused in this nature because it is not reported as often as other crimes. When it is, the caretakers typically do not believe them, making them easier to become victims . More cases happen every day, under our noses without our knowledge in most cases. In 2003, a mentally retarded woman, 22 years of age was raped in a group home. Police say that due to the severity of her disability, there was no possible way of her being able to give consent, and she was impregnated with the rapist’s baby .
There is an obvious lack of respect for those who cannot help how they were born. It is almost like another form of racism. Yes, that too has been improved with civil rights and movements that have indeed helped this country grow in a great way. At the name time, there are still problems that Stay mostly hidden from the front America puts on as a free, peaceful country. People don’t deserve to be hidden or banned. People are people, and people deserve to be treated with respect no matter what they can’t help.
It doesn’t go unnoticed though, that there are places and people who take a higher road and help these people. If you look around, you can see loving parents taking care of the medical and social needs of their children with disabilities that could never imagine them any differently. Public schools systems have special classes and teachers who eave hearts for the condition of these chi lilied. Jobs are offered to those who can accomplish them, though they are not strenuous. In a sense, America has given them the way to a happy life just like everyone else.
It rests on those who are just completely heartless to mess that up for someone. In 2003, there was another abuse case with a Down syndrome boy. A bus driver slapped the boy across the face and a school official threatened to tie the poor boy to a tree. This thankfully had been caught on tape . This incident was only ten years ago and is being forgotten and hidden still. Is the abuse ND mistreatment of our handicapped population getting better with time, or is adjust better hidden? A news article written on August 7, 2012 seems to show the latter.
Because of revelations of abuse and neglect in a home Clotheshorse for the mentally challenged, hundreds of new cases are now coming forward with allegations of the same things . Our country may look at itself as if they’ve made living better for those with the challenges of mental health issues, and in many ways and places, they have, but in all honesty, the abuse and ridicule of the mentally challenged is far too high. A big step in society needs to take place in order to fix that. Americans have been cruel throughout the years to change.
The ASK is a great example of this cruelty. We have also been known to be compassionate caring people who reach out with open arms to those who need us though, as the disaster teams showed when Haiti and Japan’s earthquakes hit. I know it is in us as Americans to be able to come together for a good purpose, but not before that purpose gets out of hand. We need to see right away what is going on in our country put a stop to It. We worry more about marijuana being legalized in what state than hose who are being abandoned and abused right next to us.