Just need to rant a moment

[charliesmum]

I got a message from my neighbour yesterday - her grown daughter called her yesterday afternoon because it looked like Charlie was trying to climb over the fence from our balcony to theirs.

They have cats that Charlie is very fond of, and because he tends to fixate on things he likes, he's a bit fixated with them, so I could see, maybe, how she thought he was trying to come over to see the Well...here's what she wrote:

(Her Daughter) called me today in work a little upset because when she came home this afternoon, she said that Charlie was climbing over the railing on to our deck. I know Charlie is harmless and I certainly know what he was doing. My concern is, is that I had left my door open today because it was nice out and if she hadn't come home when she did , Charlie may have invited himself in and no one was home.

Like I said, I know he is harmless, my concern is that he may fall and get hurt and I would also like to be able to leave my door open when it is nice without worrying that he will come in to my apartment.

I hope I don't upset you by sending this, just thought you should know.

I asked Charlie and he said he was leaning over, because the big door was open and he was trying to see if the cats were there. I can see him leaning far over the rail, but he wasn't climbing over.

I'm just really tired of people assuming the worst about Charlie without bothering to even talk to him first. Like that girl he was crushing on earlier in the year - I'm not saying his behaviour was appropriate, but she never once said to him, 'Charlie, stop that.' She just ran to the teacher or her parents and made Charlie out to be some creepy weirdo.

And now my neighbour, who knows him seems to assume he'd invade someone else's home without permission. And her daughter, who is 19 years old, couldn't seem to be able to just ask Charlie what he was doing and tell him to stop if she really thought he was trying to climb onto their balcony and come into their house.

I mean, he's not stupid, and he can actually speak and hear people. If you have a problem with something he's doing, give him the courtesy of telling him so.

I've always told Charlie to be honest about the Autism because I thought it would help people understand where he's coming from a bit more, but the other side of that coin is, they immediately think he's some crazy person who wanders into other people's house.

Comments

[geishawhite.livejournal.com]

What bothers me most about that is 'harmless'. As if he were an animal, or an idiot, someone who could be seen as a threat. He's a teenage boy, and whilst he may be autistic, he is not irrational or crazy or senseless. I almost think it's worth pointing out to your neighbour that because of his autism, Charlie is more likely to take rules as absolutes, that he is completely unlikely to enter a house without permission and that leaning over the railing is not the same as climbing over. I would personally point out that her daughter perhaps needs better understanding of what autism actually means rather than overreacting but I'm short on patience for the passive-aggressive >_>