I've got to chime in again here

My child is very high functioning autistic. As an infant and toddler there were many places we couldnt take her because of her outbursts. She had much more severe autism back then. We had a right to take her to church, movie theatre and to quiet restaurants. The thing is, if she had a bad day or a bad "season" we didn't put her in those stressful situations. Not only was it stressful for us and her- we didn't want to put undue stress on the other people around us.

Now i can take her anywhere with me, but i do remember the days when we had to miss church, leave birthday parties early and leave a restaurant before our food even arrived. It's part of the job- being prepared to up and leave if things get out of hand. It's not the church's job to make the situation ideal for a kid that can't be picked up and removed from a situation like a small child could be.

His physical stature makes this situation that much more difficult. Male autistic children are more prone to physical outbursts of violence because of their lack of communication is frustrating. He also has what i call the "Lenny Syndrome" (Lenny from Of Mice and Men) where his strength could seriously hurt someone inadvertantly.

I do not blame the church for putting their foot down. Just because they preach the gospel doesnt mean they have to put up with abuse in the church from a kid that can't be controlled in public. People expect churches to be perfect and to not have boundaries too.

There is a responsibility on the parents part to ensure their child is the best he can be from therapeutic intervention and ideal parental environment. Letting a child loose like a bull in a china cabinet because it's legal doesnt make it right.

If you want to have a new understanding about how autistic children can be corraled into behaving with proper techniques....check out the movie below. It really touched my heart. It's called AUTISM: THE MUSICAL HBO: Autism: The Musical