Minorities Targeted for Special Education and Psychiatric Drugs Cont. 1
Special Education
Psychiatrists have used special educationoriginally developed to provide equal education opportunities to the physically disabledto hook millions of children onto psychotropic (mind-altering) drugs at a cost of $28 billion a year. In 2002, the Presidents Commission on Excellence in Special Education found that 40% of children being labeled with learning disorders simply hadn't been taught to read.
The largest growth in the special education populations is among children classified as learning disabled (also called, learning and attention difficulties). While in 1975, the learning disabled accounted for 21% of all special education students, by 1998, this figure more than doubled to 46%.3
The Goldwater Institutes (research and educational organization that studies public policy in Arizona) Policy Report on Race and Disability in special education, March 2003, said, Recent national studies show that nearly two million children have preventable learning disabilities, and the number of students classified as learning disabled could be reduced by as much as 70% with rigorous early reading instruction. The sheer number of students mislabeled is staggering. Even worse, in predominantly White school districts, minority students are classified as learning disabled at significantly higher rates.4
The Policy Report also says, Unlike many disabilities, learning disabilities involve subjective diagnoses, not objective medical diagnoses.5
While African American students account for only 16% of the U.S. student population, they represent nearly a third (32%) of all students in programs for mild mental retardation.6
African American and Hispanic students are also three times more likely than White students to be labeled as mentally retarded.7 Hispanics are also disproportionately placed in special education.8
In 2001, Rod Paige, Secretary of Education, testified before Congress, stating, For minority students, misclassification or inappropriate placement in special education programs can have significant adverse consequences.The stigma of being misclassified as mentally retarded or seriously emotionally disturbed, or as having a behavioral disorder, may also have serious consequences in terms of the students self-perception and the perception of others, including family, peers, teachers, and future employers.9
Pediatric neurologist Fred Baughman, Jr., concurs: These children believe they have something wrong with their brains that makes it impossible for them to control themselves without using a pill, [and] having the most important adults in their lives, their parents and teachers, believe this as well.
No Science to Learning Disorders
Some claim that a chemical imbalance in the brain is the source of learning disorders. There is no scientific evidence to prove this or that ADHD/ADD is a brain-based disease. Dr. Mary Ann Block, author of No More ADHD, points out: The psychiatrist does not do any testing. The psychiatrist listens to the history and then prescribes a drug.10
Psychiatrists also falsely claim that ADHD requires medication in the same way that diabetes requires insulin treatment. On this, Dr. Block says: Let me clear this up right now. ADHD is not like diabetes and Ritalin is not like insulin. Diabetes is a real medical condition that can be objectively diagnosed. ADHD is an invented label with no objective, valid means of identification. Insulin is a natural hormone produced by the body and it is essential for life. Ritalin is a chemically-derived amphetamine-like drug that is not necessary for life. Diabetes is an insulin deficiency. Attention and behavioral problems are not a Ritalin deficiency.
An underlying problem is the American Psychiatric Associations Diagnostic Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM), which lists symptoms of ADHD to include: fails to give close attention to details or may make careless mistakes in schoolwork or other tasks; work is often messy or careless; has difficulty sustaining attention in tasks or play activities; finds it hard to persist with tasks until completion, fails to complete schoolwork, chores, or other duties, often fidgets with hands or feet or squirms in seat; often runs about or climbs excessively in situations in which it is inappropriate; is often on the go; often talks excessively. There is no science to this, it is merely psychiatric opinion.
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