Asperger's sufferer teaches attackers a valuable lesson
A young man with Asperger’s syndrome has taught a valuable lesson to the bullies that beat him up for being creepy and different.
High school graduate Gavin Joseph from New Baden, Illinois, was tricked into joining a group of people, before being choked and punched in front of them. He was left bruised, concussed and with a fractured nose after the savage attack.
However, instead of bringing the full force of the law down on his attackers, Gavin decided that it was time they learnt what it felt like to live in his shoes.
He asked that the offenders watched, with their families present, a 20-minute video message he taped so they could see the damage done and hear things from his perspective. He also wants them to write an essay on on Asperger's syndrome.
Gavin’s story came to light, after his proud mother Cortnie Stone shared her son’s reaction on her Facebook page.
"Some kids were talking about how it's weird that he is always by himself, attending events alone and watching people, and that it was "creepy" how he wanted to be friends with people he didn't know.
"Another kid that overheard that conversation decided to take matters into his own hands and become judge and jury, and this is the result of that.
“He didn't ask questions, didn't get to know Gavin, never met him, and didn't give him a chance to leave.
“He was called to meet someone, surrounded by people he didn't know, choked, punched, and left laying on the pavement so he would ‘learn his lesson’.”
She noted that her family had gone through both wonderful and difficult times since they found out that Gavin had Asperger's and ADHD when he was a three-year-old.
She noted: "You can't "see" Asperger's since it's not a visible disability, it's a social/emotional one that makes relationships difficult to attain.
"It doesn't prohibit his movement, or ability to walk, but it makes everyday interactions with people very difficult.
"He can appear rude, impatient, "weird", detached, or uninterested, but this is not intentional.
She noted that while Gavin found it hard to keep longtime friends, he did not stick out in social situations as he had spent years learning what society deemed appropriate.
She urged parents reading her post, to take to their teens about disabilities that can't been seen and to be "tolerant of people who are different."
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She added: “Gavin is fine. He has a mild concussion, a bruised esophagus, the tip of his nose fractured, and hematoma in his eye, but nothing permanent.”
“He did not press charges, but requested their community service be disability related, that they write a paper on Asperger's, and that they watch a 20 min video statement he taped while their families were present so they could see the damage they did and hear the event from his perspective.”
“I am so proud of him, and I hope a lesson will come of this to all that hear about it.”
Gavin’s story has been shared over 112,000 times since it was first shared on Facebook.
Ms Stone said on Thursday that Gavin and her family has been overwhelmed by the support they have received.
“Today I sit in awe, with tears in my eyes,” she wrote on Facebook.
“Hundreds of people that Gavin has never met have reached out and let him know they care. This is more than I ever dreamed of. “
Morning news break – July 6
