COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo — Pikes Peak East library made the rounds on social media after a mom posted that she and her autistic daughter were kicked out of the library for being too distracting. A firestorm of people started reaching out to the library, looking to support this family. The Pikes Peak Library District says it prides itself on being an advocate to those with special needs, so I wanted to dig deeper.
Lauren Frisbie was there that day. She says she was inside East Library when she noticed what seemed to be a mom trying to calm her tantruming child. Frisbie went on her way, but as she was leaving she noticed the mom was now outside with her daughter and looked to be in distress. Frisbie tells me, “I asked if she was okay,” Frisbie says the mother told her they had been kicked out and went on to say, "I thought how is that allowed? You told them that she has autism and you were attempting to calm her down. They just kicked you out? That can’t be right.”
Donetta’s 6-year-old daughter has autism. Certain situations trigger her and when those hit, she runs. Bugs are a trigger and a miller moth happened to fly by her during an event at East Library. It set her into an autistic meltdown. Donetta went into the library to calm her daughter and keep her from taking off, but couldn't get her to stop crying and told me the library security kicked her out. She says, “They didn’t offer me any help. In fact, they told me to go get a social worker.”
Frisbie confronted the staff about their American Disabilities Act (ADA) policy meant to protect people with disabilities in places like libraries. Frisbie says, “The head security didn’t seem to know what ADA was. She seemed confused and told me I could fill a comment card and that was it.” That’s when Frisbie reached out to News5.
I sat down with Denise Abbott, the Chief Communications Officer of the Pikes Peak Library District. Abbott explains the situation from a security perspective, “They asked this mother and her child to go outside so that the sound was not echoing inside of the library and so that people were not obstructed. It was for safety reasons.”
I requested video from inside the library that day. Security agreed to send it to me with patrons blurred out. They later denied the request citing the privacy of users' records. The head of security also tells me the cameras that would have shown the incident were not recording that day. They only had video from a distant camera that was too grainy to make out.
Donetta has filed a complaint with the Department of Justice citing a violation of Title 3. This is public accommodations under the American Disabilities Act. Libraries are a part of this requirement where people with autism must be provided with reasonable modifications and equal access in an inclusive setting. So I asked Abbott, “Do you feel like that was done here?” She answered, “Yes, because we would’ve reacted in the same way with any child. My understanding is that there was a younger child having an episode and a security guard, wanting to keep the library safe, wanting to make sure there weren’t any obstructions or disruptions.”
Abbott went on to show me all of the things they do offer those with special needs or sensory issues. The library has sensory accommodation kits filled with noise-canceling headphones, light-sensitivity glasses, fidget toys, and weighted blankets. These are kits families can request at any time.
While at the library, we ran into Eddie Leon who cares for adults, “with special needs and autism.” Leon says the East library is a weekly stop for them, “The staff is amazing. Anytime any of our members need help they are eager to help and they just love doing that.”
The library also offers things like sensory story time and virtual tours, all accommodations they say encourage families with special needs to check out. So I asked Abbott what she thinks the solution to this incident is and she told me, “I want to speak to her and ask her ‘What can we do to make you comfortable and coming to the library again?’”
The library has reached out to the mother and has not received a response.
____
Watch KOAA News5 on your time, anytime with our free streaming app available for your Roku, FireTV, AppleTV and Android TV. Just search KOAA News5, download and start watching.
