Mother says her autistic son was bullied and attacked at school in Cabo Frio: 'he's not anyone's punching bag'

Mother reports assault on autistic son at school in Cabo Frio The mother of a 15-year-old teenager contacted the Civil Police stating that her son, with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), was attacked by a classmate during recess at a public school in Cabo Frio, in the Lakes Region of Rio. Edlaine Guimarães said that the case occurred on Thursday (6) at Escola Municipal Alfredo Castro. The mother reported that her son called to say he was feeling unwell, reporting cold sweat, dizziness, headache and abdominal pain, but without mentioning at that time that he had been attacked. "My father picked him up. When he arrived, I saw that his eyes were injured, that he had been punched. And then I asked: 'Did they hit you at school, attack you? He shook his head yes, very scared," said the mother. ? Follow the g1 Região dos Lagos channel on WhatsApp. Edlaine went to school with her sister to understand what happened. "We were informed by the shift manager and his assistant that they didn't see that he had been attacked, nor did they know. They simply didn't realize that he was hurt. I asked where they were and they said that they were back there and didn't see it, asking me to take my son on Monday to talk." The boy received care at the UPA in Parque Burle. The case was also registered at the 126th Police Station and is being investigated as bodily injury motivated by bullying. History of bullying and threats At the police station, the mother reported the history of bullying and threats suffered by her son at the school. She says that students had already threatened her son when leaving school and that she had previously reported the fact to the management. After the attack, the mother says she spoke to her son again and was informed that in the first semester another student showed him a gun inside the school. Edlaine states that she questioned management and received information that it was a toy gun and that the student involved would no longer be in the unit. The family also contacted the Child Protection Council, which advised the mother to request a school transfer. "Today, he's afraid of going to school, of whoever attacked him finding out where he is. He's afraid of going out. We're a hostage of going to some public place and having them do something to him," said Edlaine. The Cabo Frio Education Department reported that it is investigating the circumstances of the incident, and that the "management team provided assistance and listened to the students involved, according to the unit's records." "The circumstances of the episode, including those related to the monitoring of the student by the school support professional at the time of the occurrence, are being investigated, and it is not possible, at this time, to anticipate conclusions about any failure in monitoring or assign individual responsibilities. The information presented by the family about possible previous episodes of bullying, threats or other conflicts in the school environment is also being verified", informed the Secretariat (see the full note at the end of the text). "If it had been him who had attacked, the story would be different, he would have been labeled as 'autistic person who attacks', and asked to leave. I want attitude and responsibility from the school, the student and the assistant, who was sitting far away from him at recess", said the mother. "I want this to go forward, because I don't want my son to be just one of the statistics of autistic people in the municipal network of Cabo Frio who suffer bullying and aggression without anything happening. I want justice for my son, because he is not anyone's punching bag", concluded the mother. Note from the Cabo Frio Education Department The Cabo Frio Education Department informs that it is monitoring the situation involving the student at Escola Municipal Professor Alfredo Castro and that the circumstances of the incident are being investigated by the Secretariat's advisory team, together with the school unit. After becoming aware of the incident, the management team provided assistance and listened to the students involved, according to the unit's records. The circumstances of the episode, including those related to the monitoring of the student by the school support professional at the time of the incident, are being investigated, and it is not possible, at this time, to anticipate conclusions about any failure in monitoring or assign individual responsibilities. The information presented by the family about possible previous episodes of bullying, threats or other conflicts in the school environment is also being verified. The school unit had already provided assistance to the family regarding issues related to school coexistence and remains in dialogue with those responsible. The Municipal Department of Education highlights that it develops permanent actions to prevent and combat violence, bullying and cyberbullying, in addition to initiatives aimed at promoting a culture of peace, respect for differences and school coexistence. Regarding the unit's professional staff, the Secretariat clarifies that the student in question has an exclusive school support professional. Currently, Escola Municipal Professor Alfredo Castro has 33 students with disabilities (PWD) and 25 classroom assistants. The size of these professionals, as well as exclusive monitoring, is defined according to the specific educational needs of the students, based on individual assessments carried out by the Secretariat's Inclusive Education team. The Secretariat's advisory team will continue to monitor the case, continuing the investigation and reinforcing, together with the school unit, the prevention, protection and monitoring actions already developed in the municipal education network, with the aim of ensuring a safe, inclusive and welcoming school environment for all students. Teenager was treated at the UPA of Cabo Frio Personal Archive