Parents rally at Queen's Park to demand more for children with autism

A protest at Queen's Park brought the concerns of parents with autistic children in Ontario to the provincial government's doorstep.

Dozens of parents - many with their children - protested a lack of adequate supports and accommodations for children with autism.

"I want to tell the boss that my service dog Ivy is not a pet," said Kenner Fee, the nine-year-old Waterloo boy who was recently the subject of a widely-publicized Ontario Human Rights appeal.

Fee and his family were fighting a decision by the Waterloo Catholic District School Board that forbids him from having the dog in class.

"This rally is happening because the provincial liberals aren't listening," said Craig Fee, Kenner's father.

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Aside from the lack of proper supports, parents were concerned about the lack of properly trained educational assistants and teachers in the classroom.

Currently the training for educational assistants and teachers is a weekend course, according to Shawna Fleming, a Waterloo board-certified behavior analyst and autism therapist.

"I would challenge anyone from the board of trustees to take that weekend course and come and meet a child with autism and put a behaviour plan together," she told CBC K-W. "They would not be able to."

Education minister Mitzie Hunter made a stop at the rally and was invited to the podium by the Ontario Autism Coalition, the group hosting the protest.

"We hear you" Hunter said. "We are very committed to the success of all students, including students who have autism."

Following Hunter's comments, Progressive Conservative party leader Patrick Brown took the opportunity to share some remarks of his own.

"I can tell you we will not accept this pattern we've seen from the Wynne liberal government," he told the crowd.

The province recently announced a pilot project that the government said would address many of the issues in the education system when it comes to kids with autism.