A little innocent girl whose name I heard as I was reading at café. The name was shouted followed by ” NO” Then I heard a cry that echoed within, it was of pain it was not of attention. I looked at shamah, who was just 12-15 year old girl with down syndrome. She wanted to go in one direction where the bowling center was, when the maid was pulling her at the other direction.

She started crying and I kept on reading and wondering with rage : Why? Where was shamah’s father? Where was her mother? Why didn’t they seek a professional nurse who was educated to deal with people like Shamah? Why did people stare at her like an animal? I saw it in people eyes, the resentment looks as if they saw a wild beast, scared looks and ones of interest or amusement. Laughs and pointing fingers , harsher than bullets, I looked at the waitress who left the café to enjoy the scene. I lost my manners, and resurrected the evil inside of me as I asked for another mug of coffee.

“I just served you one” she said without paying attention to me, amused by the scene as I asked again coldly for another mug.

She went walking to kitchen with her eyes set on Shamah awaiting for more to laugh at, as the maid struggled to bring shamah to her direction. She placed the mug on the table and rushed to the best seat in the house,

“Come here” I have said that with the urge to smack her on the head.
“Yes, sir”
If you had a daughter like the one you are starring at, would you want people to give her looks ..”
“Yes” she interrupted me.

“Then you should sleep with as many men you can, until you get one like her”

she looked at me with hate, and hate is what I looked back at her with.


I do not care about whether I was wrong or right. My only wish that Shamah’s parents were there to protect her from everything that was mentioned above.

how can we change all that? when would they be considered normal? are questions that were left unanswered as rage still seems to find its way through my soul every time I recall this incident.

Nothing is worse than what you have said, really it is shame, people have to re-educated themselves about hot to act/react towards handicapped people, in order not to hurt them, and let me tell you how much it is easy to break hearts!

Good of you Read to bring that issue, and let me tell you how pity you feel about people who may amuse themselves with other people’s misery. I think that the father and the mother of this girl and many others do feel embarrassed do to the state of their children

As soon as someone finds a kid like this he (foolishly), try to drag his son or daughter away from the poor angel, thinking that this little girl will eat his son or daughter. We have to educate ourselves to know what to be afraid of and what not. And to remember that “No One” is saved from having a member in his family like this, and most of whom I have seen were so nice and sweet to other people.

I think yes… we have to grow up!

couldn't have said it better myself..

I am shocked :( i can feel the scenario :(really i do

how can we change all that? when would they be considered normal? are questions that were left unanswered as rage still seems to find its way through my soul every time I recall this incident.

:fire: :fire: This is intollerable. Who are they to look at her differently. They to me are the ones whom are different. She is normal in her perception, maybe us the one who arent normal acting this way :mad:

We really need to aware people of many things, we shall start within us then try with others. I think this issue needs to be concidered highly back home. Her parent's are to blame and the society as a whole to be blamed.

I lost my chin of thought :mad:
This story/thread should be sticky thread to sabla and our mind.

Someone making fun of a disabled person... that's really cruel!! They can't control the fact that they are disabled... it's not as though they asked God to be like that. Anyways, I heard someone tell me once that if God takes away something from a creature, He gives them something else. So, Inshallah this little girl will be blessed with a gift that will bring her happiness, and will make the stares and comments of ignorant people pale in comparison.

Err... well Raed, though those people (and especially the waitress, you'd think women had more compassion!) were horrible you should have approached the matter differently. Being rude would just make her angry and thus unaccepting about what you will say, you should have been less 'in yo face' than you were.

When a loving child is considered a burden in any way then there is always the easy option of hiring a maid to take care of the ‘redundant’ child. I think the parents should be blamed for not caring for their daughter, how could you not have time for your own flesh and blood?

Secondly we should point fingers at ignorant people who do not consider that a disabled child is a child nonetheless who should not be treated any different than the norm.

Raed I am glad that you reproached that women and made her realize her mistake even though its sad to know that there are people like that in the world who laugh at others misfortunes.

Raed, you've touched an open wound.

A scenario happened few years back .. I know a little boy who had an accident. caused in brain injury, left him unnormal in several ways (eg. motion and speach) .. in one of the festivals, he saw a police man .. because his own dad is one .. he ran to greet him. The rude police man just chased him away, a man approached him asking him why he did that, he said: I know this kid .. he is just an annoying mu3awaaq (disabled) .. The other man told him: well, that kid is my son!! The guy was stunned and started apologising- yah right after what!!!

Imagine the feeling of little boy!!!

We really need awarness .. we really need to give those kids a chance to live thier life normally!! Its enough what they are going through, why do we insist on making thier life more difficult (by we I mean society collectivly)

There is a book I read, excellent for those who want to understand the life of disabled people, and especially to those who have one in the family .. I think it should be added to the school circullum or any book/story that talks about how to accept people with different needs!

The book is avaliable online, for those who want to read them: Mathaq Al-Sabr, Mohammed bin Eid Al-Araimi (http://www.ofouq.com/library/oraimi/mathaq/mathaq-01.htm)

Thanks alot for the link arby. That was a very well said post. I agree 100% with all you said and i think your idea is fantastic.

:( very sad and frustrating indeed!

Najah, I really advice you to read his story .. its very touching and for somone doing your degree it would give you more power to work sciencerly in it.

I will, I saved the link arby and i will surely read it inshallah starting this weekend.

Someone doing my degree I'm very much concerned about this issue, I got alot of stories from friends practising it back home and its fearfull. I have dreams and inshallah one day it will be fulfilled. With the help of people like you and many educated sabla members. Inshallah, such insidents and closed mentalities will start to vanish from our loving muslim society!
Very sad indeed, when we are ought to be the loving people, when our Islam the only religion we practice should lead us yet we seem to just recite it without understanding it.

Allah kareem, will inshallah let u know right after i finish reading the book. thanks again.

I have an idea Najah, maybe it will help other sabla members to understand some mental and physical dissability. Why dont we start a seies in Health Sabla, dicussing one of the syndroms like down syndrom, then autistics, ... etc ?

I am sure the internet is filled with simple text and with your knoweldge yyou could help too?

Co0ol, If you will support the thread I'm more then willing, it will give me more information as well, as am still not in there. We have an inactive expert here, hope they will get active in it inshallah.

I will start inshallah this weekend.

I will give all my support inshallah .. just tell me what you want and I will be willing to help :)

A friend of mine had a related child hospitalized. He started visiting her everyday, and on the 10th day when the girl completely recovered he could not help but notice that the other patient did not receive any visitors. He was a 10-year-old kid, paralyzed due to a fall from considerable elevation. His eyes were that of a wondering man, glancing at the emptiness of the roof.

My friend then asked the nurse if this kid received any visitor, even if it was occasionally. She revealed how cruel people could be. Then he stopped to explain to me how this kid was forced by his parents, out of a practical joke, to ride a camel then he fell off, and I would presume the fall was on his back. This happened two years ago, and ever since he was checked in. No one cared anymore about his existence, not even his own parents.

This is sad. The problem here is the lack of education towards the disabled. Not many people are interested in taking care of them, or at least spending some time with them. We still lack having professional schools for them, so that they can live their lives as normally as possible. We do have some institutions, but I think that we still need to give it a lot more.

Down's syndrome children, are known to be the happiest people, and the sweetest at all. You just need to spend a few minutes with them to realize how special they are. If only people had a bigger heart.

awww thats really cruel!!

I know a girl who was abonded by her mom after her dad passed away because she had a hand shorter than the other and same in her legs .. a lady took care of her and she turned out as a very intellegent kid!!

Its CRUEL. EVIL!!!
Just because a human being does not 'fit' into our ideals of what is considered normal does not mean that he/she should be tossed away or dumped into XYZ hospital.
Allah yisa3id il uma to understand and educate themselves..........to be tolerant of their own children either 'normal' or not!

:sorry: very sad and touching indeed it really touched my heart..I can't beleive that at this century there are still uncivilised humans not even humans i dont even know what to call them..an animal will also take care of their baby if it was not normal :no: