(Updated: August 18, 2010 at 11:21 AM CT)
The family of a 17-year-old girl is suing alleging that Special Olympics Illinois told her she could not play basketball because she relies on a service dog to carry her oxygen tanks.
Jenny Youngwith has played basketball for six years with the aid of her dog, Simba, who helps her cope with a respiratory impairment. Now, however, Youngwith’s family says they were told by Special Olympics Illinois that it is “not appropriate” for her to participate in their basketball or track and field programs since she requires the assistance of oxygen and a service animal.
In response, Youngwith’s family filed a federal lawsuit with the aid of Equip for Equality, a nonprofit that’s part of the government-mandated Protection & Advocacy System. Both Special Olympics Illinois and Youngwith’s school district are named in the suit, since the special education sports program in question is run under a partnership between the two entities.
The complaint alleges that the decision to bar Youngwith from participating violates the Americans with Disabilities Act, the Rehabilitation Act and Illinois law.
“Special Olympics is a wonderful organization, but it is disheartening that in this instance it has chosen to ignore its own mission statement by unlawfully excluding Jenny from participating in its basketball program,” said Janice Youngwith, Jenny Youngwith’s mom. “Organizations that promote inclusiveness, like Special Olympics and public schools, should not prohibit Jenny from doing any activity that she can safely undertake.”
Doug Snyder, president and CEO of Special Olympics Illinois, said in a statement sent late Tuesday that the organization has yet to be served with the lawsuit, but he believes their approach will be found to be “prudent, fair, reasonable and legal.”
“While we cannot comment on the specific allegations made in the Youngwith lawsuit regarding the use of service animals and metal oxygen tanks by athletes during competitive sporting events, we hope the community will recognize Special Olympics Illinois must make decisions that take into account the safety and well-being of all athletes participating in its sporting events and practices,” Snyder said.
Special Olympics Illinois is accredited by Special Olympics, Inc., which runs more than 200 programs involving nearly 3.5 million athletes with disabilities around the world.
Something like Special Olympics should never exist; very exclusionary and supports the mainstream view that people considered affected by a disability should be segregated. Since it does exist it has a firm obligation to accommodate any and all people considered affected by a disability who wish to participate. Not very good modeling.
I used to feel that way, until I participated in the US Special Olympics Games here in Nebraska last month. While it certainly is no model of inclusion, it provides an increadibly positive experience for everyone involved, not only building athletic strength and skill but self image, confidence, and social skills. It also provides free health, dental, and eye examinations and treatment to all atheletes. I think it is safe to say that none of the thousands of SO atheletes would have this opportunity if they were put in competition with typical atheltes.
As for this issue, I agree that the exclusion of this former participant is wrong and am confident the situation will be corrected.
Get a life! I have a special olympics athlete and there are things she CANNOT participate in. Thank you Special Olympics for keeping my daughter safe and NOT letting her do things that could harm her. I don’t care if this girl has played basketball and baseball for six years — was it with Special Olympics? I didn’t see any mention of that. Her mother just wants her 15 minutes of fame and “Hey wouldn’t it be nice to get some money out of this organization”? She should be ashamed. Did it occur to the mother to ask Special Olympics just why it was not “appropriate” for the girl to play? Probably not — especially when they can try and bleed the organization for money. I’m sure there are plenty of other athletic events this young lady sign up for, and to you from “response below” there are some things that special olympic athletes cannot participate in for the safety of themselves and others. By, the way, since you think the organization is segregating people, I don’t recall ever seeing a disabled adult play for the Yankees, the Pistons, go on the PGA tour, or ski in the Alps. You obviously don’t know anything about the organization or you would not write something so stupid. Special Olympics is a wonderful organization, thanks to Mrs. Shriver, and ALL of the athletes love every minute and every coach, volunteer, friend, parent, bus drivers, etc., etc. Maybe you should attend one of the sport activities — then you can comment with a more open mind.
Special Olympics is an amazing organization and offers wonderful opportunities for people with developmental disabilities. My son has enjoyed participating from the time he was a small boy, through high school and community college years. He was born with Down syndrome and developed insulin dependent diabetes when he was 7 years old. Managing a chronic health condition can be complicated but he has been healthier because he has participated in so many sports and events through Special Olympics. He has made lifelong friends with athletes, coaches, their families, and volunteers. He especially enjoyed the Healthy Athletes services at the State Summer Games and has a lifetime of memories of effort, support and achievement through competitions as well as ordinary practices. The skills he developed helped him participate in and enjoy inclusion in mainstream classrooms and on the playground.
There was a time that Special Olympics did not exist. I am thankful that my son did not grow up during that time. He has the choice every season to participate, or not. When he chooses to participate, Special Olympics is there for him. I believe Special Olympic supports the view that people considered affected by a disability should have the opportunity to participate in sports and social activities wherever they live. The hundreds of organizations that make up Special Olympics do a much better job at accommodating individuals than any other organization I have encountered as my son has grown up in the mainstream of our community.
In this case, it is unfortunate that the decision was made to exclude the athlete who relies on a service dog and O2 for her respiratory difficulties during Basketball and Track and Field seasons. During the court proceedings we may learn what prompted that decision; until then we do not know the whole story. It could be that the school district involved has made a case for exclusion, and that it did not originate with the Special Olympics. The point is that the family is fighting for the right for their daughter to participate in Special Olympics, an organization that has been there for individuals and families for more than forty years. If there is another organization that will be there for my son and others who have developmental disabilities, that treats participants with respect and encourages them to challenge their own personal best, and also offers so many other opportunities, show it to us.
Until we know more about this situation, we can only hope that the situation will be resolved in the best interests of everyone involved. And that is pretty much what our hope would be if we knew more about it than we really want to know.
Segregation is segregation no matter how you slice it.
I’d like someone to explain to me how they segregate people. They run inclusion programs for non-disabled and disabled kids. They run programs for inclusion in high schools that promote acceptance. They have unified sports that have disabled and non-disabled playing side by side. Are you going to see things like that in other sporting venues? If anything they are moving too the extreme opposite of segregation. I’m sure SOIL’s argument will be that the dog or other players could be hurt, but she has been playing for six years already. I seriously doubt that if she plays that the local program is going to put her on a tier one team that plays at a fast enough pace that she would be a risk to anyone. In my experience anyone can play any sport, but it’s up to the program to be creative enough to make it successful.
My son has played a couple of sports with Special Olympics. One of the things I love is that he is really learning how to play the sport competitively. I try to picture a player on his team with a service dog. Is the dog running up and down the court too? What about the tubing from the oxygen tanks — it’s clear and hard to see. What if another player runs into it? Wouldn’t that be risky for the girl? And finally, if there were a dog on my son’s team, he simply wouldn’t participate because he dislikes dogs. I can see how this would be very challenging even for Special Olympics to accommodate. Hope they can work it out.
To those who feel Special Olympics shouldn’t exist, do you also feel that high school sports should never exist? Or professional sports? They are all very exclusionary. To make the cut, you have to possess a certain athletic skill, coordination and ability as well as be able to understand complex plays and positions. Special Olympics is the only chance that my 22 year old son, who has multiple disabilities, has to participate in team sports. Due to his disabilities, he can’t play high school or professional sports. But I suppose it would be more politically correct for him to stay at home or watch from the sidelines while others play.
I do agree that Special Olympics needs to be more accommodating at times, and I hope that they work out a solution for the situation in the article. But to say that the organization shouldn’t exists is a bit much.
How about applying a little common sense to this … How could it possibly be safe to the other nine players on the court (to say nothing of the referees) to have one player, tethered by oxygen lines, being chased around by a large dog carrying oxygen tanks? What if another player trips on the dog? What if another player cuts into this girl’s oxygen line? And if the players are in wheelchairs (the article isn’t clear on this), then what happens when a wheelchair collides into the dog?
Apart from the obvious danger this poses to the players on the court, I would imagine that the organization that provided this girl with her service dog (and probably animal rights groups as well) would be up in arms at what is an obvious (and dangerous) misuse of the animal. Making the poor animal run up and down the court carrying those tanks can’t be good for the dog, and I am sure is not the use for which the dog was trained.
Why can’t the girl just carry a small oxygen tank that she can strap on like a small knapsack?
It would be interesting to know the other side of the story. My son has Down syndrome, but has not yet participated in special olympics, although we may start this fall. He’s 13 and keeps busy with martial arts – in a totally inclusive setting, which I do prefer. But, I know that most of the people who are involved with SO love it, so I think we should give it a try. However, I’m in Illinois, and now I don’t know if I really want to be involved in an organization that’s made this decision. It’s clear that she plays these sports and is able to participate, plus the parents have offered to put the oxygen tank in a back pack like another special olympic athlete uses in another state, and not use the dog. So, at the moment I think this is a very disappointing decision, and I hope they change their position.
And, just because you have good experiences with an organization, doesn’t mean every decision they make is right.