Kids in the US are given sexual education in their pre-pubescent years and that makes sense. And even though we need to teach children the concept of consent, good touch and bad touch from an early age is it right to sexualise an act of a child?
Is there not something twisted if a boy gives a peck on the cheek of a girl or hugs her and the innocent act is considered sexual?
A five-year-old boy with autism was apparently listed as a ‘sex offender’ on his school’s records because he hugged his classmate.
Nathan, is a nursery student in East Ridge Elementary in Chattanooga, Tennessee, U.S.A and he was reported for hugging a child in his class and his parents claim that they were informed that he would be placed on a record “for the rest of his life”.
Nathan’s mother, Summery Putnam told News Channel 9 that she was called by his teacher and informed that he has been accused of “sexual activities” for ‘hugging a child and kissing another child on the cheek.’
To this she reportedly said that, “He doesn’t know what he’s doing wrong.”
She wrote in a Facebook post, ‘This child is autistic, he comprehends and functions very different than your typical five-year-old. What do you do?
‘Who do you turn to for help when the school will not even listen to the child’s doctor when he explains the child’s difficulties in his comprehension of simple things such as boundaries?’
Meanwhile, Hamilton County Department of Education spokesman Tim Hensley told Dailymail.com, “The family of the child is not sharing the full context of the concerns expressed to them by the school. The issue was not a hug or kiss that prompted contact with the family.”
“Also, there was no punishment given to the child by the school. The school is simply interested in the well-being of a very young child as he grows and learns with his classmates at East Ridge Elementary.”
Nathan has reportedly been put in a different classroom now and is enrolled in special education services.
His mother even created a page called Nathan’s Voice where people have been coming forward to support the child and voice their opinions on how ridiculous is the fact that he is being considered a ‘sex offender’.