Laughing at Loews: Part II
p2pnet.net OT News:- Not long after we ran our piece on Anthony Pratti’s nasty experience at a Loews Cineplex in Wallkill, New York, we heard from Dave Richardson, the Times Herald-Record reporter who broke the story.
Anthony, seven, is autistic and also has cerebral palsy. He’s in a wheelchair and going to the movies is one of the pleasures in his life.
So when a Loews manager threw Anthony out for laughing too loudly during March of the Penguins, his mother, Gina, was furious.
“Loews did finally call the family and apologized for the incident, saying they may not have reacted in the most sensitive way to the situation,” Richardson told us.
“Their corporate VP of marketing, John McCauley, says the company will provide sensitivity training for employees to make sure this doesn’t happen again in the future. And they gave the family a VIP pass, for what that’s worth.”
We had a lot of comments on the story, including one from another child who’s in much the same boat as Anthony.
Read on >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
My name is Rasha Kawar and I’m 10 years old and I use a wheelchair and I also has cerebral palsy. My mom told me about Anthony’s story and we read the article together and I feel mad and sad so much because this is not fair and it hurt a lot and I want everybody to treat me and other children who have special needs like everybody else because we are like everybody else.
And its OK if we are different because this is how God created us and there is a lot of people and children with special needs or old people who are different or slow and you don’t know how smart or nice or kind or good they are even if they are different. And you may be old and slow and have special needs yourself one day so do you want other manegers to through you out and say you can’t come to the same movie theatre or the same store or to the same restaurant because you are slow and different or laugh loud????? I learned about many great important people like Helen Keller and Beethoven and President Roosevelt and Christopher Reeves. Do you think that they should have lived away from others because they have special needs?
If anyone has anthony’s email please send it to me because I want to write him and give him some ideas. I’m also an advocate for children with special needs . I have a petition on line at www.ucp.org/rasha. Please sign my petition and tell other people about it too.
God bless,
Rasha Kawar
{Rasha, I’ve emailed this to Dave over at the Times Herald-Record and asked him to pass your love on to Anthony. And my daughter, Emma, who’s just read this, sends you a big hug and a kiss and says if Mrs Pratti sees this, she’d like her to do the same for Anthony. Jon)
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Rick is a frequent p2pnet poster and he has a disabled son.
He says based on personal experience, he’s willing to bet Anthony’s laughter upset a patron, “who was bothered by the fact it was a disabled child. People react differently around the disabled and can’t concentrate because they’re focused on the disability. Soon as the child does something (in this case laughing) that normally doesn’t bother them when an average person does it, their irritation and discomfort grows. Sorry but it’s the truth. it happens all the time.”
In his 10 things worse than a laughing child… Alex H also had a few points to make, namely
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1. Over priced tickets.
2. Box office staff refusing to accept concession ID.
3. Over priced candy bar.
4. 20 minutes worth of coming attractions.
5. Sitting in the first five rows in a packed theatre and getting neck cramp.
6. Sitting in something sticky.
7. Ushers shining torches in your face while looking for camcorders (it’s already on the net guys, don’t bother).
8. Disgusting bathrooms.
9. Out of focus projectors (everybody’s had at least one).
10. Closing the curtains before the credits have finished rolling.
Now that we’ve been reminded of some of the things the cinema IS responsible for, can we cut the disabled kid some slack?
My best friend in high school had a brother with Downs Syndrome and he would sometimes behave in what we would call an inappropriate way. He, of course didn’t know that what he was doing was inappropriate. Yes it was annoying at times, but shit happens and you learn to live with it. He certainly had to.
It would be nice to think that people could stand to be sitting in the same room as a happy child, and let’s face it – penguins are pretty funny.
However, remember a few things:
* Anthony Pratti is 7 years old. Can anybody here get a 7 year old kid to shut up when you want them to? Please enlighten us as I’m sure there are millions of parents around the world who want to know how its done.
* Anthony Pratti went to a matinee performance of a G-rated film. This is the session you take kids to, and there were other kids there who were laughing. Anthony was singled out.
* Anthony Pratti was kicked out 15 minutes into the film. His parents also were not given a chance to quieten him down.
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Our daughter, Emma, just turned nine, has only has two speeds. Go and Go. She’s very loud and she’s always laughing.
We don’t go to the movies very often. Who wants to with the prices, the sticky floors, the people with Big Hair and Big Mouths and so on? But having checked The Incredibles out via a p2p download, we decided it was worth seeing. And Emma loved it. She laughed her head off every ten seconds or so. You need to hear her to know what that means. She made the other kids seem like they were only barely amused.
Kids laugh. And they laugh loudly. Doesn’t matter if they have cerebral palsy, or anything else. It’s being a kid. And if they can’t laugh watching a crew of Chaplinesque penguins cavorting in a movie, especially during a matinee performance …..
Jon
If there’s something you think we should know, contact us – tips[at]p2pnet.net
See:-
nasty experience – Autistic boy ejected from cinema, August 18, 2005
August 19th, 2005 at 4:37 pm
my nephew has Asperger’s Disorder (form of autism).. if i was ever in that situation i would have beat the sh1t out of the minimum wage dumbass who tried to tell him to be quiet.
how many morons sit in that theater with cell phones or sit there and talk through the whole movie. what a crock of shit
August 19th, 2005 at 4:44 pm
how many movie reviews start off “I laughed my ass off”
well wtf.. so when a movie reviewer laughs his ass off its ok.. but not a poor helpless disabled child.
and they wonder why ticket sales are down.
August 19th, 2005 at 10:11 pm
As a former Lowes manager and projectionist, I can assure you that sensitivity is at the bottom of the corporate worry list. I can also assure you that the reception a patron will receive varies greatly, one theater to another. The young person in the original story obviously went to one of the more unpleasant theaters. But even one show like that is too many. 10 years ago, Loews instigated a campaign to woo patrons with good service and consideration. Thats a thing of the past. Since then they have fired all the real projectionists, cut back on any maintainance, raised prices and cut every possible corner involving customer comfort. Not that they are so different from any other theater chain. The days of having a pleasant time in a movie theater is largely over. And what did they get for all their cutbacks? Most of the chains are in bankruptcy or barely hanging in there. Too bad. It was fun once. And I liked my job…..way back then.
August 20th, 2005 at 1:08 am
Sometimes life is hard to understand and it can be very scary. Not knowing what tomorrow will bring is easy to handle compared to just trying to make it through today. I often wonder if this is what my son may be thinking. I am the parent of a developmentally challenged and disabled young man. My son, James (Jimmy among his family and friends), is a young adult diagnosed with Cerebral Palsy and spastic quadriplegia with profound mental retardation. James is unable to communicate in any form and he is completely reliant on his mother and me, for his complete care. His innocence and the smile often displayed have a deep angelic quality. But, this is an observation coming from a very proud parent, as proud as any parent could be of their child. There is a poem written about a disabled son:
OUR SON
Our son, the gift from angels from heaven above.
Our son, the giver of unconditional love.
A celestial spirit, a soul with a grin.
A heavenly heart, within a body of tin.
A boy with tears the size of a whale.
A man full of laughter like the winds in a sail.
A person with a goal and desire.
A person wishing to play and swing in a tire.
A boy grown to a man just wanting to love.
Our son, the gift from angels from heaven above.
I recently was made aware of a very upsetting occurrence in the small New York town of Middletown. In a small quaint town, one not so different then our town of Morgan Hill, California, a young boy was harassed, discriminated and embarrassed by an insensitive and uncaring person and company. This past Sunday at the Loews Cineplex movie theater 7 year old Anthony Pratti was watching the 1:15 pm matinee viewing of the G rated movie, “March of the Penguins”. Anthony was smiling and laughing, he was enjoying the movie. 7 year old Anthony has Cerebral Palsy and Autism. Anthony, bound to his wheelchair, was sitting with his family in the disabled wheelchair section of the movie theater. Then about fifteen minutes into the movie, a theater manager came over to Anthony’s parents and told them that Anthony had to leave the theater because he was, “laughing to loud.” Even though this matinee viewing was filled with children all giggling and laughing just as loud as Anthony – none of these other children were asked to leave. Anthony’s father explained to the manager that their son was disabled and did not understand, but they would try to have him be quieter. The theater manager brusquely told them that it was not acceptable and that Anthony would have to leave the theater. The Pratti family followed the manager to the theater lobby, at which point the manager said that they didn’t need to all leave, just Anthony. Needless to say the Pratti family left the theater extremely hurt, embarrassed and angry. Loews corporate office latter apologized to the Pratti family, but it was not until four days later and their unfortunate incident had made the news in the New York tri-state area and national cable news services.
Hearing this family’s story made me cry. It made me think of how my son is treated and looked upon in our community. James has several friends of all ages here in town and we are very thankful for those who share in his special qualities. But for the most part our community tolerates my son and appears to accept him because he is here and they do not have a choice. The acceptance seems to be due to the lack of experience and knowledge of the disabled. Then there are the some within our community that look negatively upon my son and have even conveyed their ignorance. Although, it hurts to see people avoid my son I try to look at the situation as a chance to “educate” and enlighten others about my son and being disabled. My son has been disabled since birth. His disabilities were caused by trauma during the birthing process. James’ disabilities were caused because of oxygen being deprived to his body and the doctor not accounting for this to possibly occur. The deprivation caused his retardation, Cerebral Palsy and spastic quadriplegia. Cerebral Palsy is a disability resulting from damage to the brain before, during, or shortly after birth and outwardly manifested by muscular incoordination and speech disturbances. Spastic Quadriplegia is paralysis with tonic spasm of the affected muscles and with increased tendon reflexes. Mental retardation is a condition in which people have substantial limitations in their intellectual abilities. People with mental retardation score significantly below average on tests designed to measure intelligence. As a result of their intellectual limits, people with retardation experience difficulties in daily activities such as learning, working, and caring for themselves. They also have difficulty with such social skills as understanding other people’s behavior or communicating thoughts and feelings. Now, in James situation the severity of all these is extreme and permanent. Contrary to a few ignorant people, James’ disabilities are not contagious. It takes James a lot longer to do what others can do in a few seconds. James can let you know if he is happy or sad, by his heavenly smiles. James loves to interact with people, he is very trusting. James loves the San Francisco 49ers and the San Francisco Giants. He has excellent taste in the quality of music that he likes. James can distinguish and interpret a musical piece and its make up before specific sections of that piece are played. James loves all animals and is saddened when he sees an animal hurt. James and other disabled in our community are numerous. Next time you are walking down town, at a local eatery, shopping at a local grocery store or the farmers market and you see someone who is disabled, don’t hesitate to introduce yourself. Shake hands and spend a few minute to get to know them and their family. Look at the beauty for whom they are, not what slows them. Remember that they are just like you!
John, Mary and Jimmy Reese
August 20th, 2005 at 1:10 am
I am the author of the above piece, I am new to this site and did not see a box to enter my name…….so diregard the author box that gave me the name of a Coward. My name is John Reese of Morgan Hill, CA
August 20th, 2005 at 3:58 am
STOP patronizing the movie/music industry mafiosos!!!!!!!!!!
Even they are telling us that. They want you to pay to download it so they only have to pay a few tech guys to maintain servers – no packaging, no middle man, no brick & mortar stores, no shipping costs, … PURE profit & 100% control of their “property” is what they want senor.
August 20th, 2005 at 4:01 am
We’re all just bricks in the Wall mi amigo.
August 20th, 2005 at 4:04 am
I’ve always found people that don’t have 100% control of their “faculties” as compared to what we deem “normal” to be the nicest people I’ve met. Ironic that to not be “normal” tends to equal what should be the higher level of “human-ness.”
August 20th, 2005 at 4:05 am
Welcome sir…
August 20th, 2005 at 4:12 am
I can understand asking someone to leave *IF* they are too loud and *IF* they don’t become quieter after being warned.
What I don’t agree with is not giving them a chance to quiet down and expecting a family to leave a child outside the theater. Disabled or not, you don’t leave a seven year old child alone like that. That goes beyond insensitive and into the realm of irresponsible. Perhaps even illegal, as it can be considered a criminal form of child neglect.
Any place of business has the right to ask disruptive people to leave within reason. They do not have the right to suggest harmful, insensitive and possibly illegal actions to customers.
Rick, the php reader with a disabled son, is correct about some people’s reactions to disabled people. There are people out there so emotionally hindered that they have the primitive reaction to anyone who appears severely flawed – treating them as they would someone with an infectious disease and something to be avoided. Perhaps some of these people can’t handle the idea that the world is not perfect, but a lot of them act as if in their gut, they expect to be contaminated and might “catch” what’s wrong with the disable person themselves. They hestitate to touch the person, surreptiously wipe their hands when they do and other “don’t contaminate me” actions.
In this day and age, people should be educated enough to know that most disabling conditions cannot be transmitted to other people, except on a genetic level. You would have to be living in extreme denial or a complete hermit not to have been exposed to something that explains this fact. And most of these people, if questioned, will admit that they “know” that it’s not possible. But somehow, this knowledge has not made it past the gut reaction level in them.
Amanda in Oklahoma
August 20th, 2005 at 5:43 am
My name is Laila Kawar, and I’m Rasha’s mother, the 10-year-old young lady who shared her comment yesterday.
I’ve been reading all the comments on this story, and wanted to share with you that I strongly feel that it is our responsibility as parents of children with special needs, to help the community understand that our children are not a “label”. Although they have a disability, that will not be what defines them. They are first and foremost, children, with the same right to the same life, dreams and opportunities that others have: an education, having friends, being a part of the community, a job, and the freedom to make their own choices.
As a parent advocate, I try to educate our community, by concentrating on Rasha’s ABILITIES, and helping her become an advocate for herself and others. Rasha dose not like the words disabled or handicapped, and if someone approached her with those words she replies saying: “I Am Able”… When other children ask questions, I usually try to keep the answers simple, while focusing on the similarities between Rasha and her peers. We usually don’t go into details regarding her disability or things that she can’t do…I heard once an advocate stating that we all have a kind of special needs, but that is the not something that we would like to share with other people.
I believe that if we want a better life for our children or ourselves, we need to do our part in educating our community. We have to build bridges to positive changes for the next generation. This is the only way for our children to achieve their dreams.
(To John, Mary and Jimmy: I enjoyed reading about Jimmy’s strengths and abilities. Thank you for sharing that.
And for Jon, thank you for your kind words to Rasha).
God bless,
Laila Kawar
August 20th, 2005 at 8:52 am
hi john!
don’t worry. no one is required to register here. i think the “Anonymous Coward” label is “tongue-in-cheek”. i think the trolls are happy to stay anonymous.
anyway, welcome to p2pnet.
i was also very physically disabled for a few years – i could barely stand or walk and was almost paralysed. in that time, i got a glimpse of what james and others more severely handicapped might go through, as regards to how the outside world treats them. (some people who read my articles here believe my real problem is in my head, but they’re the anonymous cowards.) although my “friends” and colleagues showed their true colors by treating me like a leper and cutting me out of their lives, i still kept my dignity. it’s clear that you and your family haven’t lost yours, either.
thankfully, i no longer live in the states, but in a country that takes care of it’s people at all costs, and where the majority of people don’t look at a handicapped person as a pariah.
take care.
August 23rd, 2005 at 7:32 pm
Well what I don’t see is an explanation of why the manager approached the family in the first place. Given that most of them are not monitoring each theater, the only explanation would be that there were PATRONS already in the movie that complained. In 30 years of going to the movies, the only time I’ve seen someone removed is when someone inside the theater watching the movie complained.
While the manager may have been insensitive, the issue probably started with someone else watching the movie.