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Parents React To Video Of Teacher Excluding Their Disabled Daughter From A Class Performance

Photo: TikTok
Disabled child school performance TikTok

A heartbreaking video involving a disabled child at what appears to be an elementary school performance in front of parents has gone viral after people grew ashamed of the sight.

All of the children were all standing in a circle, holding hands and singing along with the teacher as the parents looked on with smiles on their faces — well, not all of the children.

The disabled girl was placed outside of the circle and excluded from the performance.

The viral video was posted to TikTok under the account “@ijahcharles333” where it received over 1.2 million views and nearly 22,000 comments.

The caption reads “This is heartbreaking. We all need to speak up when we see this. People with disabilities deserve the same respect as everyone else.”

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A text box in the video reads: “A teacher excluded a student from participating in a class activity in front of all the parents because of a disability.”

As the able-bodied children sang and danced along in the circle inside of the school's gymnasium, the young girl in the wheelchair sat in the same spot the entire time, often peering over at the other kids who looked like they were having fun.

At one point, the teacher looks over at the disabled child who shows her what she’s holding in her hand before looking away again and focusing on the other children.

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People in the comments expressed the heartbreak they felt watching the disabled girl be excluded.

“Not only is the teacher to blame but so is every single one of those parents & adults sitting there watching without saying a word,” one person wrote in the comments.

“She easily could’ve been in that circle holding hands with them,” another suggested.

Many people commented and implied that if this is how she was being treated in front of the parents, she might be subjected to even worse treatment on a daily basis where the parents can’t see.

Outrage over the viral incident was everywhere as people begged the question of why the bare minimum wasn’t done for the child.

A local news station titled Caledonian Record reported that the child’s parents weren’t in attendance at the performance, but were equally as ashamed of the events that transpired.

Fortunately, the people of Lisbon, New Hampshire joined together as a community to do something nice for the young girl.

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Christmas Carolers drove down to the disabled girl’s home and included her in a holiday celebration.

Four-year-old Adriel Carignan, who was born with spina bifida and has to travel around in a wheelchair, was met by a large group of carolers from five North Country communities in order to help her feel included this holiday season.

“The carolers sang Santa Claus Is Coming To Town, Rudolph The Red Nosed Reindeer, Jingle Bells, and more,” the Caledonian Record reported, adding that local police departments offered their services to provide traffic control and gift presents to the young girl.

Carignan’s parents, Micah and Mary Carignan, were stunned by the outpouring of support for their daughter, as Micah was quoted saying “It finally feels like it’s Christmas,” he said.

They added that although Adriel was shy at first, she quickly relaxed and enjoyed herself.

Her parents didn’t believe that the exclusion from the school performance was malicious, but simply “a careless and thoughtless action” that they met with the principal in order to rectify the situation so it doesn’t happen in the future.

“We’re her advocates,” Mary added. “It’s definitely something I always worry about. I want to make sure she’s being included.”

Thanks to the kind carolers from the North Country communities, she was.

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Isaac Serna-Diez is an Assistant Editor who focuses on entertainment and news, social justice, and politics. Keep up with his rants about current events on his Twitter.