The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

soc SERVICES Group wants to ensure message h Parents get training in civil disobedience BY KIM ZARZOUR I was a beautiful balmy spring ng Wednesday a perfect night for learning how to be arrested While the warm weather lured families into parks and out neighbourhood strolls a small group of parents headed inside Thornhill Community Centre to what it will be like when carry them ofF to jail ley were and are that was a workshop called re- Protest and violent Action and was presented whose children nave ley are weary of fighting for kids education and have decided its time to be trained in civil tired of sitting on my butt waiting for other people to make decisions especially when those decisions take months or years to finally be made or acted upon The parents warned the prov ince it would come to this if some thing didnt change Autism Resolution gave the province one year to fix things but earlier this month the group made it known that the situation is worse than ever that nearly Ontario children with autism are waiting for therapy that helps them or waiting to be assessed for the much needed therapy Now pushed to the brink the parents say theyre ready to push back It was an unlikely looking group of dissidents moms and dads learning about conflict and between lellphone ion versations with die babysitter par ents such as Neil Meirovich The Richmond Hill father came to the workshop for tips and strate gies and to learn about the after math of getting arrested His 10yearold son Jerry has autism STAFF PHOTOMIKE BARRETT Guest instructor Matthew Behrens of the group Homes Not Bombs demonstrates with Sharon how to protect yourself if being arrested by police at a protest or demonstration Im tired of sitting on my butt waiting for other people to make decisions especially when those decisions take months or years to finally be made or acted upon he said Stephanie Griffiths made the drive up from Toronto Her children have and both have been kicked out of school because of their disability her son for an entire year 1 am so desperately fed up she told the group describing how her nineyearold who had to be homeschooled identified with Rosa Parks and the civil rights move ment He knows theyve violated the civil code he said to me he is being denied his right to free public education Laura Kirby- Mcintosh of Thorn hill has exhausted mainstream methods seeking help for her son with autism and now wants to know more about the process of being arrested Were at the point where we have to make drastic change As a society were taught to be obedient and follow orders Rich mond Hill mom Taline Sagharian said Were at the point where we have to make drastic change Dr Norm a parent advocate and psychologist who works with special needs kids came to the workshop out of enormous frustration He watches school boards prom ise parents services and a year later its still not happened The bottom line is there is virtually no enforce ment of the laws already on the books no consequences to school boards if they dont do what they say Im here because I figure theres got to be another way he said Showing parents that other way was Matthew Behrens a community advocate with the non violent action network Homes Not Bombs For more than years Mr rens has provided training to social action groups This cause was special to him he said This one reminds me of my early inspiration with the civil rights movement he said Its dear this is a whole group of people being denied an ess The parents watched videos of protesters confrontations with police and Mr Behrens assured them this type of action can get S3 Academy J of LEARNING Career and Business College For rim information go to or com results He suggested the parents move beyond waving placards holding rallies and the same old hey hey ho ho bad stuffs gotta go type of chant and use their imaginations following Martin Luther Kings example of awakening the con silence With its big steps leading up to entrance Queens Park is a theatre Mr said adding using songs and costumes can get atten tion without being threatening The group discussed pos sible actions including a 24hour speakout protests held across the province even turning Premier McCuinty s new Family Day into Autism Family Day What you have is a very vulner able premier who is Mr Family he said suggesting the parents capital ize on this Even going to trial on charges such as criminal mischief can pro vide a stage to discuss the problem of lack of services for autism he said He assured the parents penalties for civil disobedience are usually minor a very low fine or slap on the wrist and most non violent protests involve trespassing which is not a criminal offence Ive been arrested 70 or tunes and never spent more than one week in jail he said The biggest hurdle to overcome in said is fear If the event is well- planned and deliberate it doesnt have to be chaotic Being dragged by a butty police unsettle buried memo ries and emotions he warned Be aware of your trigger points Organizer Sharon Aschaiek called Wednesdays- workshop inspiring The next step will be to find out which of the parents is ready to take the next step and undergo more in- depth training she said This was a good launching pad she said It got the wheels turning inting lit Off it lns